X Evo: Creating Legends
by Stone Shield
Summary: Naruto uses his newly obtained power to escape a moment of extreme persecution.  He is whisked into the Marvel universe.  Rated M, but will most likely be in the T range.  Semi-Super Naruto.  Naruto/Wanda
1. Recovery

X Evo: Naruto's New Journey

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or X-Men.

Speaking Normally

_Thoughts (Personal or Psychic)_

**Demonic/Empowered Voice**

Chapter 1, Recovery

It is said that if the will is strong enough, anything is possible. That said, can _anyone_ do it; clear the mind and focus solely on one desire, one need? And desire it enough to actually will it into reality? Most of the time it is nearly impossible to do as few people in the world have a will strong enough to do so. Naruto was one such person. And though it was only a thought, it was filled with so much sincerity and need it practically came into fruition on its own. His thought: "I need to leave."

Another Dimension/Reality: The Sanctum Sanctorum, home to Doctor Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme and practitioner of the occult arts. What few know is the Sanctum Sanctorum is a nexus, a converging point between all realities and dimensions.

And it was at that very moment that Stephen Strange, from his study, felt a rippling through the realm. Something was coming, fast. But before he could even move, a gout of flame appeared before him, ending in a quiet 'thud' sound. He could honestly say of all the things he'd expected this wasn't one of them. The air had filled with the acrid stench of scorched flesh as smoke rose from what Strange could make out to be a burnt human body. With all he'd seen, it still took an effort to hold down the rising urge to vomit. As a former medical doctor, he could see that most of the skin and muscles were burnt off, leaving bones visible. What startled him the most were two things. First, to his surprise this person was still alive, and second, was healing via demonic energy. But first things first. In a swirl of smoke, he and the near dead figure were gone.

Xavier sighed sadly as he thought of the young man he'd been counseling for the last month and a half. There had been progress, but it was slow goings. It had taken more than three weeks just to get a response from him and even then he still wouldn't open up. Once he was reasonably sure the boy wasn't a danger to the others, he'd allowed him free reign to move around the campus. At first he'd been worried that the boy was like Wanda Maximoff, filled to the brim with power and, in his case mostly, unable to control it. His initial look into the boys mind told him all he needed to know about him. He was a good person, though treated like a monster. It had astonished him when the resident Sorcerer Supreme appeared in his library, charred body in tow. And then after they had moved him to the still being built infirmary, Strange had talked with him about the boy's peculiar power, the same one that allowed him to heal nearly as fast as Wolverine. A Demon, at least in part, biologically speaking. That was something else. But when they'd run his blood through the computer, the readout showed a variation of the mutant gene; unexpected, to say the least.

His concern at the moment though was the boy's mental state. Delving into his recent memories had revealed everything that had happened to him, resulting in his burnt condition. But recently the boy had started to talk. It wasn't much but it meant that he might be ready to trust again.

It had been a busy week as they'd managed to recruit several students. There was Scott Summers who was the first of the students, then Jean Grey when her telekinetic powers manifested. And soon, he hoped the latest addition, a young man named Kurt would be make his decision.

Making his way across the spacious lawn to a nearby tree, his wheelchair came to a halt beneath its branches. "A beautiful day, is it not?" he asked the seemingly empty area around him.

"It is," answered a deep voice, the emotion sounding strained. Visible only to those who knew where to look, a person sat up in the branches. A barefoot, blonde, sixteen year old teen boy, clad in jeans and a t-shirt, sat on a branch, his back against the trunk.

"You know, there are other students in the school. I'm quite certain they'd be more than willing to make your acquaintance."

The blonde said nothing, preferring to continue his private thoughts.

Xavier nodded, "I understand. In time I hope you'll change your mind." Rotating his chair, he left. "_He's almost ready_." Though the biggest and most important step was also the most difficult. As he left, a haunting melody filled the air. The professor smiled to himself, as he remembered giving the flute to the boy as a means of expressing himself without words. He had to admit, the young man had learned fast. And when he played, it was like he poured his soul into the music.

That night while most of the school slept, one individual was awake. Naruto lay on the rooftop staring at the stars and crescent shaped moon. In his mind though, he was contemplating his life; his past, the present, and most importantly, the future. Mostly though, he was contemplating Xavier's offer. He reminded him of the Sandaime with his generous and kind nature. He was very optimistic, but a good man. Maybe…maybe he was right. Maybe now, in this new world, was the time to start over. Sighing, he let the wind lull him to sleep.

Several days later he gathered his resolve. It was still relatively early, only the senior staff being awake. Walking stealthily down the halls he made his way to the Professor's study, as he was most likely there by now. Stopping at the twin doors, he prepared to knock only instead hearing the professor's voice. "Come in," he heard through the closed doors. Opening one of the doors, he poked his head into the room. "I really wish you wouldn't do that, Professor," he said wryly.

Charles Xavier chuckled to himself. "You do the same, Naruto," countered the bald man, smirking.

"Touché."

"Now what can I do for you on a fine morning like this, Naruto?"

Naruto blinked, "…You already know, don't you?" he asked, exasperated.

"I didn't need to be psychic to guess. I take it your ready to meet the other students then?"

Somewhat pensively, the blonde nodded.

Xavier smiled. "Good. The students should be getting up any time now. I'll introduce you during breakfast," he finished, giving the blonde several minutes to fidget while grabbing a book to look through.

Everyone was digging into their respective breakfasts when the professor rolled into the room. "Good morning, students," he spoke, nodding to Ororo. There were choruses of "Good morning, Professor," from the still small group of students, Scott and Jean. "If all of you could give me your attention for a second," he requested. All three heads turned to him. "Thank you. Now, there's someone I would like you all to meet…You can come in now." And heeding the Professor's beckoning, a young man walked hesitantly into the room to stand next to him. Ororo recognized the young man, having seen him already when he first arrived. "Scott, Jean, I would like to introduce Naruto Uzumaki. He is a new student here."

"It is a pleasure to meet you all," he responded to everyone after they went around introducing themselves. Taking a seat he quietly ate, listening to the ones called Scott and Jean tell him about Bayville High, the school he would be attending with them.

"I have informed the school that he would be transferring in. I was hoping the two of you would take him along with you to school, today, so that he may start classes there," Xavier added over a steaming cup of coffee.

"Sure, Professor," Scott answered, with an emphatic nod from Jean.

"Hey, there's a football game tonight. You should come with us," insisted Jean, Scott nodding in agreement between mouthfuls of eggs.

He rode silently in the back of Scott's red convertible listening to the two teens describe their teachers and classes. Most of the subjects he recognized, having a little experience in already. Specifically, Chemistry, Physics, and a few Biology courses he knew of already. Such was standard for genin to learn in the academy as each was necessary in certain fields. There wasn't much point in teaching kids to kill their enemies if they couldn't find where all the important anatomical weaknesses were. He grit his teeth. That is, he was taught incorrectly. On purpose. He'd had to learn the correct way on his own and without anyone's help until Jiraiya had taken him under his wing and taught him. Still, most genin were well versed in mathematics, various sciences, and a few logic and ethics classes, to name a few.

Not too long and they pulled up to a large three story brick building, the words 'Bayville High School' in large letters over the front doors. Jean looked back at him, "Are you alright?" she asked, sensing the emotions radiating off him.

Brow furrowed, "In this place…I feel ill at ease." Scott and Jean shared a glance, the male smirking.

"Don't worry about it. Everyone has that reaction." Trying to be serious, Jean poked him in the ribs for that little joke.

Looking between the two, the blonde couldn't believe how oblivious the two were to each other and to themselves. It was very obvious they cared for one another, yet neither even really knew about their own feelings, let alone how the other felt. His frown deepened when he looked to the top of the steps outside the main doors.

She was wearing a dark blue suit and skirt combination which only added to her authoritative appearance. Her hair, a deep auburn, was in a tight bun, accentuating the high cheek bones of her face. A stony visage, a scowl cut into it adding more power to her scathing glare. All in all, she looked very…sharp…just angular. The disapproving glare she was sending them as they walked toward her, nearing baleful, was strong enough, that it put his old sensei, Iruka, to shame.

"…Dragon lady…" he mumbled, mainly to himself, but Scott snickered anyway.

"Mr. Summers, Miss Grey, you two are officially late," her voice deep and heavy, and cold enough to make a person worry about frostbite.

Jean quickly stepped up. "We're sorry, Principal Darkholme. We we're-"

"It was my fault," Naruto spoke, moving from behind them and into the conversation. "I'm new to Bayville and they were showing me around. My name is Naruto Uzumaki, a new transfer student. Professor Xavier sent my files?" he asked, betting on a hunch. It was just good for him that his hunches usually paid off.

Darkholme sent a withering scowl back at him for stepping into the crosshairs, and being so nonchalant about it. "…Yes, he did." Her frosty gaze swept back over Scott and Jean. "You two can go, but don't be late again," her tone quite terse. Giving brief goodbyes and promising to catch up with him later, they jogged down the hall to their respective classes. "And as for you, Mr. Uzumaki…Come with me to my office and I'll get you your class schedule."

"Thank you," he answered lightly, ignoring her haughty glare. They walked in silence all the way up to the second floor where her office was located. Opening a file cabinet and flipping through several papers she retrieved a thin manila folder. From within, she pulled out a single paper.

"This is your schedule for the year," she said, holding forth the paper. He meant to take it, but her grip was iron firm. Looking up, he intercepted her curious glare. This one wasn't disapproving, annoyed, or angry, just…curious…as if trying to discern the answer to an unasked question. It was like she was…looking…for something, but he never faltered, only sending back an apathetic glare of his own to match hers.

"Thank you…Principal Darkholme," he spoke quietly, yet with a tight resolve, and walked out of the room. Darkholme was confused. Hadn't he left behind his… Looking to her hand, she found it empty, the itinerary gone. How had he… Her eyes narrowed.

"So, Charles, you have another one. I wonder. Who are you really, Mr. Uzumaki?" and for a brief moment, dark eyes shifted to a shining yellow, with cat-like irises. She would have to watch this one, like the others, until she knew what he was capable of.

124…125…126. This was it. Sighing, he steeled himself before raising his hand and rapping lightly on the door, his knocks echoing as a series of dull thuds. Opening it, he walked into his first class of the day. The other students looked at him curiously, mumbling between themselves. "Yes, young man?" asked an aged professor, peering at the young man through exceedingly thick-lensed glasses.

"I'm sorry for being late. I'm the new transfer student," he said calmly, and handed the man his schedule, a small handwritten note from Darkholme written in the lower margins. The teacher scanned the paper briefly before handing it back to him with a nod of approval.

"Very well. Please, take a desk."

Naruto nodded. "Thank you," he murmured and headed for a free desk to the side of the room. Sitting in the rather uncomfortable chair, he listened fairly intently to the teacher as he began where he'd left off: physics. Though it was a little boring as some of it was material he knew from his days as a green academy student.

Throughout the morning he went from class to class, introducing himself to the teachers and listening to the lectures, only letting boredom consume him once. It was 'Physical Education'…riiiiiiighhhht. They were all such lightweights. He had no doubts that any green genin could whip their butts. As a genin even Sakura hadn't been…he crashed that train of thought before it left the station. That was a person he never wanted to think about again.

He did his level best to ignore the glances he was receiving from the cornucopia of teens. He would have been even more nervous had he actually understood what some of the looks meant. "He's gorgeous!" a short-haired brunette whispered to her friend in the next seat over. Guys in general just ignored him, though one or two sent dark glares. Please, he'd faced death on a daily basis from the moment he was born, and that's just counting the people in his village. What could these…children…do to hurt him? And that's what they were. He hadn't been a child for the longest time. His…survival…had demanded he mature far faster than anyone else. Chances were the glaring guys were the boyfriends of the ogling girls. What made it really awkward though, was that he could hear it all. However, his understanding was a little…limited…not having received such positive reactions before.

Lunch was interesting. The students, or the herd as he began to see them, broke up into groups that seemed to have specific themes. "Having an alright day?" Lifting his head, he saw Jean approach, lunch tray in hand, before sitting across from him.

"It's been interesting," he admitted after a moment. "Though I could swear someone's spying on me. I've got that feeling of being watched."

Jean smiled to herself, laughing internally. He had no idea! Several of the girls' tables were gossiping up a storm about the new 'cute guy' in the school. He was completely oblivious…in an endearing way. "What?" he asked, brow quirked at her smirk.

Forcing the grin from her face, with some difficulty, "Nothing," she answered quickly, the picture of innocence.

A tray dropped next to Jean's. "Hey! How's lunch?" asked Scott.

Naruto's face took on a look of fascinated confusion. "I'm not really sure. I'm not even sure what this stuff is…" and gave the mound of mush a decent jab with his fork. "A moment ago, I looked at the grey stuff and…I could swear it looked back."

"Tuesday's mystery meat," Scott informed sagely. "Welcome to high school cuisine," he added wryly.

Sitting at the top of the bleachers, Naruto listened as Scott explained the rules to him. Really, it seemed a little…tame. Sure, there were some intricate strategies, but for the most part players relied on their brute strength. Sure, he was a brawler by nature, but there was always an underlying plan to everything he did. Overall, he wasn't too impressed with the sport, but it was interesting predicting the strategies either coach would use. Really though, Scott was watching Jean as she hovered around the sidelines taking photos for the school's 'yearbook'.

Receiving a nudge in the ribs he looked away from the field. Following Scott's crimson lensed gaze, he saw what had garnered his attention. "Looks like someone's making a late withdrawal," he said, standing up.

"Want any help?" Naruto asked.

"No, I should be able to handle it."

Five minutes later an explosion from under the stands lit up the night.

"Have you ever considered contacts?" Naruto asked conversationally. He was a little guarded, but he could still sense the tense atmosphere and wanted to alleviate it…as always. They had ridden back to the institute in silence after the 'accident' at the football game. The stiff glare from Scott in the rearview mirror told him not to push the subject.

"You're taking this well," Jean spoke up, thoughtfully as she turned to the rear seats to face him.

For a now rare moment, Naruto smiled. It was small and wan, but there. He knew what she meant. The unanswered question. "I've actually been at the institute for a while now. I just…preferred…to be by myself. So while you may not have seen me, I have definitely seen you. Who do you think dropped the apple from the tree out back of the mansion?" Something about the two just made him feel more relaxed. He couldn't sense any ill intent from them. They were…innocents.

The redhead blinked. "I thought that was the wind," she muttered, surprised.

"So you can control plants?" asked Scott as he navigated the dark road.

"Yes and no," the blonde answered slyly.

"Why didn't you introduce yourself earlier?" asked Jean, voicing an obvious, but still important, question.

Naruto grimaced, "My egress and arrival to Bayville was less than…pleasant. The Professor has been counseling me, and we finally felt I was ready to meet you." Both of the teens were curious about the details of his travel and why exactly it wasn't pleasant, but his far off look gave Jean enough warning to prompt Scott via a jab in the ribs so as not to ask the question.

Deciding to change subjects, "So then what exactly can you…do?" Scott asked.

Naruto actually snorted. This was the most animated they'd seen him all day long. "How long have you got?" he asked in a manner quite reminiscent of himself before he had been betrayed.

"…?"

"…Sharing would only be fair as I know all there is to about your…gifts." After a moment of composing himself, "I can control the…energy…produced by my body, and mold it to perform certain tasks," he answered, trying to dumb down chakra as much as possible. "Like you, Scott, my body stores energy, but I can draw it out and do…stuff…with it." He wasn't quite sure how to introduce to them the concept of alternate Earths, or that everyone in his world was capable of doing this. "The limitation is that I have to learn how to do these things. I can't automatically do it. And it has taken years, in fact nearly a decade, to bring my control to the level it's at, which is still relatively low I might add."

"So your mutation is simply the production of this…energy?" asked Scott, eyebrows showing over his sunglasses. Thank whatever gods existed that they didn't impair his night vision. He excelled in leadership skills whereas Jean was the real brains of the pair. So while she seemed intrigued, he was struggling a bit with the idea.

"As well as the potential to utilize it," Naruto added. "But remember, I say 'potential'."

"Almost like muscle memory," Jean suggested. "You learn by doing."

Naruto's small smile grew wistful. "Yeah, well, it has some…side effects….as well." The two were silent, giving him their attention. "Creating this energy increases my metabolism to a gargantuan scale. The more I use it, the more my body creates, and as a result I usually have to eat a lot."

Scott was dazed, while Jean was listening raptly.

"Think of my body as a storage vessel. The more energy I use, the more is produced, increasing my reserve size. Being that it is produced by my body, my cells are…saturated…with it. As a result, my body is a little…different."

A pair of wary glances were sent his way, one via the rearview mirror.

"The energy has augmented my bodily functions," he amended for them. Jean's eyes widened in understanding.

"What?" Scott asked, seeing the girl's reaction.

"Everything about me is enhanced, Scott. My strength…endurance…healing…reflexes…balance…senses. It can be quite…unsettling…at times."

"Wait, enhanced healing?" Jean asked.

"Yes?"

Scott scoffed in amusement. "Just like Logan." Jean nodded in agreement.

"The same Logan that the Professor has mentioned to me?" Naruto asked.

"Most likely," Jean answered. "So what is this energy?"

That one actually stumped him a little. Most of what he knew had come from Jiraiya who was more into practical learning than Iruka who excelled in total information coverage. "Think of it as a…base…energy. It has the potential to become other forms of energy, but in order to do so I have to learn how to do it."

"Can you, maybe, explain that another way for the less science inclined?" asked Scott apologetically.

"What I have already learned? I can use the energy to create duplicates of myself, for one." Scott and Jean were both bug-eyed, the former swerving a little on the road. "Should I wait to finish until we get back?"

"You probably should," Scott agreed. "One 'accident' is more than enough for one night." Already, the familiar long drive of the side road to the institute was coming into sight. "Besides, I think you should show us just to make us believe you."

"Professor? You wanted me to tell you when I planned to demonstrate?" Naruto asked, poking his torso in through the doors. The handicapped man's eyes glinted with interest in the dim lighting as he looked up from the tomb he was reading. He had wanted to see him use chakra, not just from his memories.

He felt his familiar shyness creeping up in him. When he sought attention by being 'the fool' it was easy, but this was him. He absently wondered how Iruka could stand in front of the class and lecture every day. "This is the energy I spoke of," he informed them, drawing on a little of his chakra. A blue film began to form around him. The audience, complete with Ororo, watched with captivated stares as he explained the energy. "And it is, essentially, my own life energy. If I ever use it all up, well, you know, no matter how unlikely or difficult that could be," he inferred, finishing off and let the energy dissipate.

"Fascinating," Professor Xavier murmured, examining the plasma like substance wrapped around him.

"So what can you do with it?" asked Scott from the couch, leaning forward in slight anticipation.

"With creativity and training…many applications are possible," he answered, remembering what Jiraiya used to tell him. "Remember what I said in the car?" he asked, facing Scott and Jean. The pair nodded. He concentrated for a second before a pair of duplicates appeared on either side of him with a faint 'pop' of displaced air. "These are solid duplicates created with my energy," he introduced.

The professor gave them a curious glance. "They are self aware, if to a limited extent," he spoke a second later.

Naruto nodded. "Yes. An…imprint…of my mind is placed within each upon creation. So they can even think and act independently." Scott and Jean were both gawking, not having seen as much as either of the two adults in the room. "And when they are destroyed," the two clones disappeared in twin small puffs of smoke, "All that they know, all they have learned, is sent to me via some kind of link."

"Psychic?" the professor theorized.

Naruto shrugged before shifting uneasily on his feet. "Maybe, with more practice…"

"And you know what they know?" asked Scott, impressed. "Dude, you would never have to go to school again!" He got reproachful glares from Ororo and Jean, the latter agreeing, silently. "Never mind," he said meekly, feeling the weight of their combined glares.

He went into his explanation of using chakra to cling to objects, or repel them. Scott and Jean nearly had aneurisms when he told them he could walk on water, and that was after he climbed the wall in front of them and dangled from the ceiling. Then, about how, with practice, he could further enhance his body by actively pumping chakra throughout it.. Finally, he reached a more…sketchy…area of explanation. Elemental control.

"Earlier, I said that my energy could be transformed into others. What I meant is that I can, to an extent, change it into elemental energies. That is, fire, wind water, earth," he said in amendment, not wanting them to think he was talking about the hundred plus elements of the sciences. When he got questioning, confused looks, he demonstrated by gently waving his hand. A little over ten feet away, Jean's hair was violently whipped backwards. He received looks of awe from the two teens, and looks of appreciative understanding from Ororo and Xavier.

"I met a man, a few years ago, who helped me to control my powers. When he died, his teacher showed me how to sense and utilize the energies of the world around me."

"What?" "Huh?" asked Scott and Jean at the same time. Naruto smiled lightly. It reminded him of his first days at the academy when Iruka first started teaching them about chakra.

Smile still present, "If I meditate, I can draw in and use the energies of nature itself," he offered. "It doesn't feel quite the same, but I guess that's to be expected."

Scott ruffled his hair in a show of utter bafflement. Not that he didn't understand, but that that was a lot to take in. "…That's…man….um…huh," he said with finality.

"It's strange, really," surmised the Professor for him. "Your ability is simple enough, but its effects are so…widespread." His observations were mainly for the others as he had already thought of such ideas earlier on.

"You're telling me," retorted the sunglasses wearing teen, throwing himself back against the couch. "Is there anything you can't do?" he asked the blonde.

Naruto just gave him a pained smile. "Many things, Scott, but it is never as simply as we want it to be. As you are well aware, nothing is without consequence. Everything has a price. What I can do took training…and sacrifice," his voice growing sad.

"What do you mean? Sacrifice?" asked Jean, more careful about what he was saying than Scott had been.

"I'm going to go get something from my room," he said, sighing tiredly. "Can you tell them, Professor. Your objectivity would help."

"Very well," the Professor answered watching the blonde slowly exit the room, before sighing himself. "You will have to forgive his secrecy; the boy has seen his fair share of the darker side of humanity." Switching moods entirely, "Now, Jean, Scott, what I am about to tell you may be a little…difficult…to hear, and even more so to understand, but please do not interrupt me until I am finished." With their looks of agreement, he continued to lay out the exceedingly complex story that was Naruto, starting with his world. The concept of alternate Earths was something straight out of sci-fi, but with a little effort, they conceded and agreed to the possibility. Well, Jean understood. Scott just nodded at the more advanced bits. "Naruto, is from a world where, from what I have seen of his memories, everyone has the potential of doing what he can."

"Wait, so is he a mutant or not?" asked Scott.

"From my analyses, he is, Scott, as are, quite possibly, the entirety of his world."

"Whoa," the teen woofed appreciatively.

"Indeed," agreed Xavier. "That was quite similar to mine own reaction when I first learned of it."

"So how did he get from his Earth…to ours?" Jean put forth, picking up on a key point of interest.

Xavier gave her a quick nod before continuing. "To explain that you need to understand Naruto himself," he added. "In his world, there were powerful entities composed entirely of energy. In fact, the same energy that the people of his world, and he himself, use." The teens listened as what felt like a fairy tale or lost story of history unraveled before them. "His people, to protect themselves from these…creatures…found a way to put them inside others, so that the power would be contained and, eventually, destroyed. Unfortunately, for the process to work-"

"A newborn child must be used as the container," Naruto finished, walking back into the room, stopping beside the Professor.

"Why a child?" Jean asked, barely over a whisper.

"My energy…chakra….is carried along pathways throughout the body. As the body matures, the pathways cease growing and harden into a permanent form. While placing the demons, as we believed them to be, in adults would be fatal, the container dying and the creature released, a child's body would adapt more easily. The pathways would grow to accommodate the massive influx of energy, and survive while containing the beast." Scott's jaw dropped, Jean's not too far behind.

"And that is just the beginning. There are consequences to being the container of such beings. Stigmas. Often, the child is trained to become a living weapon. Sometimes the energy is too much and the creature can influence the host. I knew another who had been driven to the brink of insanity by the beast within him," he added. "The people either fear or hate them…us. My childhood was…interesting… and for the first decade I never knew why, either. So, I repeat, the price of power like mine is high, and I can only hope that I have finished paying for it." He focused on the tense teens. "I told you before that my body is enhanced by my energy, by my chakra. That isn't quite accurate. It is enhanced by the energy of the creature that once dwelled within me."

He held forth the objects in his hand. One was a metal plate with a swirling leaf pattern etched into it, and next were a handful of knives, one of which had three sharp blades. And finally, he reached into his shirt and pulled out the necklace that Tsunade had given him so long ago. The original string had been burnt to a crisp, but the jewel had survived, and he was able to restring it. "These are all I have left from my world." The tri-prong kunai had been given to him by Jiraiya in his Will, and though he couldn't use it like the Yondaime could, it was still precious to him. It saddened him, remembering the noble pervert, and that the book he had treasured had been burnt to ashes.

"What do you mean 'once dwelled'?" asked Ororo, bringing the conversation back to a worrying area. "Where is the creature now?"

"Its energy is where it always was, within me, but its consciousness, its soul, has left," he answered the white-haired woman as he pocketed the kunai and hitai-ate plate. "As for how I got…here…" he said, looking to Jean, "Not really sure at all. The way Strange explained it, I…willed…myself to leave, and the different energy within me reacted and brought me here. Something about conviction, or whatever." It had been a very confusing conversation with the mystic.

"So, why'd you wanna leave your home?" asked Scott.

The Professor tensed, as did Storm, but a glance from Naruto told them he was okay with answering…that. "Do you know what immolation means, Scott?" By his face taking on a green pallor, it was obvious he did. "I was trussed up and set on fire, both as a response to what I am, and in celebration of a former friend of mine being announced village leader. In fact, it was by his order." Scott looked like he was about to lose his lunch, as did Jean. "So, as you can guess, there was a fair amount of incentive to leave."

"What about your family?" asked Ororo, having never heard the entire story before.

He grinned ruefully. "Orphan." Though he knew the deeper secret behind his…family…it wasn't something he felt like sharing. He didn't want any more pity than he could see in their eyes. Xavier knew, he had no doubts. The man had been in his head after all.

Conversation was rather tense for the rest of the night. The Professor had let them all go to bed without digging into the whole 'football game' fiasco. He felt that they were drained enough after Naruto's talk, and decided he would wait until the morning to talk with them about it. He was amazed though by Naruto's admission. His trust was not easy to come by, as he had seen, but he seemed to have found Jean and Scott to be so, and quickly too.

He retired for the evening as well as he and Ororo had a special appointment very early the next morning.

Middleton Train Station:

Charles and Ororo waited on the platform as the early morning arrivals exited the cars and onto the platform. Scanning the crowd, they were looking for one person in particular, someone they had never met before. "Is that him?" asked Ororo, motioning to the young man exiting the train with a duffel bag.

"That's not Kurt," the professor corrected lightly before turning towards the rear of the train where a cloaked individual with twin bags was exiting and doing his best not to be noticed. "That's Kurt."

Far north, a man pulls his Harley off the winding mountain road before parking outside a small convenient store. Removing his helmet, he donned a battered cowboy hat and headed inside. Hardly had he made it through the door when a newspaper stand caught his attention. Specifically, the name 'Bayville' mentioned in the margins of the front page article. 'Trouble brewin' back home,' he mused before grabbing one of the papers.

"You gonna buy that paper?" asked the store owner from behind the counter.

"That's why I'm holdin' it, bub," he answered gruffly and tossed the paper onto the counter. "And a bottle of water, too. Cold." The owner turned to get the beverage while he himself perused the article. He wasn't liking what he was seeing.

"Warm weather we're havin' for this time o' year," the old man said as he offered the bottle, and took back the bills. Ringing up the purchases, he heard the sound of something being sliced, but missed seeing it. All he saw was the spinning top portion of the glass bottle as it settled on the counter. A second later, the bottom half of the bottle was slapped back down on the counter, empty.

"Recycle that, would'ya?" the burly man asked before turning and leaving, paper clenched in a tight grasp.

On a distant peak, feral, angry eyes watched the small figure leave before snarling.

The following morning, Friday, saw the occupants of Xavier's up fairly early as everyone had their own plans for the day. Scott and Jean were both setting out with Naruto in tow. Respective backpacks slung over their shoulders, they walked past the common area. Catching a glimpse of the professor, "We're heading out, Professor," Scott called, only to be stopped.

"Scott, Jean, Naruto, you three come in here for a minute," Xavier called to them, interrupting their progression toward the door.

"What's up, Professor?" asked Scott, eager to get going.

"Before you go, I'd like to introduce you to a new student." Pushing the cracked door to the small library open further, the three assembled. The room was dimly lit, as always, and the professor was at the far wall. What caught their attention though was the slumped, cloak wearing individual to his right. "This is Kurt Wagner. He arrived early this morning."

Scott immediately took the initiative. "Hey, Kurt! This' Jean, I'm Scott, and this is Naruto."

The blonde gave a lazy wave. "Yo."

"How you doin'?" the sunglasses wearing young man continued, offering his hand. Kurt immediately shied away from the contact.

Naruto spotted kneejerk reaction almost on the spot. That kind of thing came from fear.

The young man retreated to Xavier's side. "Kurt, you are among friends here," Xavier assured, Jean walking over to his side.

Hesitantly, the cloaked young man pulled his hand from within the folds of his robe, taking Scott's hand and shaking it. "Hello," he greeted in passable English, but with a thick German accent.

Scott tried to hide his surprise when a second later he noticed the limb was blue…and furry.

Noting the expression of shock, Kurt pulled his two fingered hand back quickly into his robe.

"Ahem," interrupted Xavier, hoping to clear the tension in the air. "I was just telling Kurt how I set up this institute for gifted youngsters. Youngsters whose gifts are not always an asset. Right, Scott?"

The teen had hoped that the fiasco of the previous night might slide by, even if he knew better. "Uhh, about last night-"

"It was difficult to forget. It was on all the news channels," the bald man reprimanded.

"It was a bad situation, and…there was an accident," he countered, scratching the back of his head in discomfort at the situation he was in. "Sorry."

"I know," Xavier acknowledged, steepling his fingers. "Fortunately, no one was badly hurt, and the true cause was not discovered, but you must be more careful," he urged.

Scott's patience frayed a little. "Come on, Professor! I'm backing a bazooka behind each eyeball! What do you want from me?"

"Control, Scott! That's what you're here to learn. That's why you're all here." He turned to Kurt. "Scott's eyes emit a disruptive optic blast beam."

Feeling a bit more courageous at all he was seeing and hearing, the new mutant reached up and pulled back his hood. "Cool." Dark blue hair fell around his long, pointy ears, and his slender face gave him an elf-like, maybe Puckish, appearance.

"How 'bout you, Kurt?" asked Jean. "Got a special gift that brought you here?"

The young man was gone in a small puff of smoke, reappearing all the way across the room in a similar cloud of smoke. "Maybe," he answered playfully.

"Whoa," Scott and Jean murmured in mutual awe.

"_Sweeeeet,_" Naruto thought, whistling appreciatively. Though he noted the smell of sulfur from the smoke, he filed it away for later.

"I'll be helping Kurt get settled in. We can talk more tonight."

That early morning found a young, rather toad-like individual meeting with the school principal. And when he left, he was significantly paler, fear in his eyes.

Kurt looked around in poorly concealed awe. "Whoa. This bedroom…is mine?" he asked, not quite believing.

"Of course, Kurt," Xavier answered. Ororo walked to his side, a package in hand. "Your parents sent you to us, because they knew that you would be happy here."

Kurt's smile sagged a little. "Happy?" He turned to stare at his reflection in the mirror over the dresser. "How can I be happy when I look like this? I scare people…" The weather witch placed the package on the bed for him to find later.

Smiling, Xavier beckoned the young man forward. "I have a surprise for you, Kurt." Reaching into his jacket, he pulled out a digital wristwatch. "Put this on," and handed it to the blue boy. The moment it slipped over his wrist, his image flickered, another taking its place.

Kurt stared in wonder before shooting over to the mirror once again. His skin was pale, his hair black, and he was dressed in casual clothes. "I don't believe it!" He looked himself over. He looked so… "I'm…I'm normal!"

"Of course you're normal, Kurt," Ororo agreed from next to the professor. "But not because of that machine."

Xavier nodded. "Storm is right, Kurt." Rolling over, he guided him to the mirror. "Normal is what you truly are. Never think otherwise. This is just a disguise," and with a press of a button, the holoimage faded, returning curt to his blue, robed self. "A disguise so that you'll not be persecuted by those who do not understand your gifts."

Kurt nodded solemnly. "I understand, professor. But nonetheless, you rule!" he cheered, reasserting the holoimage. When they left to give him time and space to settle in, he noticed the box on his bed. Lifting the lid, his eyes lit up as he came to realize what was inside.

The bell rang for lunch. Separating off from the crowd, Scott went to stow his books..

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on your perspective, it was then, when the halls were relatively empty that he was broadsided by Todd Tolansky. Figuratively speaking.

Cerebro came to life, jerking Xavier from his reading.

Watering her garden with a miniature storm cloud, the senior staff member observed the blonde before her as he floated in the air in a meditative position, buffeted by the air around him. As spectacular as his results had been in utilizing his innate wind nature to fly, hovering was slowly becoming a troublingly difficult goal. His face was screwed up from the strain. He could levitate, but the control needed to do so was different than all out flight. "Remember, Naruto, your emotions directly affect your abilities. If you're agitated, it will only make the task harder." At the start, it had been difficult, but not overly so. As time progressed though, his irritation began to show as he shook in air.

"_Storm._"

The only outward sign that she had been contacted by the psychic headmaster was a slight inclination of her head. "_Yes, Charles?_" she acknowledged across the link he had established.

"_I was wondering if you might…audition…someone for me,_" and he filled her in with details regarding the supposedly unnoticed trespasser on the campus.

While she was more than happy to do it, she still sighed in disappointment at the lost chance to further the young man's training. "Naruto, I have to go take care of something, I want you to take a break for a few minutes. Once you've calmed down, try once more." He shakily dropped back to the ground. His feet touching the concrete floor of the terrace, wobbling, a bit dizzy from the intense concentration. "When you've reached your limit, that'll be it for the evening."

He nearly fell out of the air when the professor spammed the campus. The newest addition, Kurt, was in the Danger Room with an intruder. He didn't ask for the 'how' or 'why'. He may not have been in said room yet, but he knew enough about it. When left without command, the defenses were automatic.

Anyone who didn't know this…

Cutting all wind chakra, he dropped to the terrace floor and bolted back into the building.

"Oh, I get it!" Nightcrawler exclaimed, understanding dawning on him, "It's a training area." Having a bright notion, "Like this." Teleporting away from Jean's telekinetic safety net, he reappeared on top of one of the robotic arms. "I just pull the plug, and-OOOPH!" The plug had hardly left the socket when the machine started bucking wildly beneath him. "WHOA!"

"HRAH!" a blur passed right over him.

Fist rocking forward, Naruto tore through the section of wall, the robot arm exploding. Maintaining his momentum, Naruto landed heavily against the brushed steal. He was barely there before coiling his muscles and jumping. "Watch yourself," he warned, shooting himself at the next target, a large spinning set of blades raised from the flow. An empowered drop kick left it in pieces.

An arm tried to retaliate. Swinging down on him, it was blasted away by a red beam of energy. "Gotcha covered."

One moment they were fighting flaying metallic appendages and defenses, the next, everything went dead. "Is everyone all right?" Xavier asked over the intercom, tone stressed and full of worry.

"We're all okay, Professor," Scott called.

"Man, speak for yourself," Toad huffed. "I'm outta here," and was out the door before anyone could stop him.

"Professor, I'll go after him."

"No, Scott. Let him go," Xavier countered. "Still, Naruto?"

"I'll see him out, Professor," the blonde answered, understanding. Blurring away, he shot after the slimy teen, acting as his shadow until he left the property.

Kurt's head fell. "I knew this would happen. Ahh, I ruin everything," and in a puff of smoke he was gone as well.

"Go after him, Scott," the Professor urged. Unlike Tolansky, Kurt wanted to belong, but was more afraid of doing something wrong than the other teen was.

It wasn't too hard to tail the fleeing teen. Even if he couldn't see him, smell alone made him easy enough to track. Then again, he was well within eyesight of him, so tracking wasn't necessary. What was really embarrassing was the teen's poor sense of direction. It took him five minutes just to make it up to the ground level. Was it really so hard to recognize an elevator door?

"Free at last," the toad boy cheered in relief, popping out of the glass doors and back onto the familiar lawn.

And right into the most imposing figure he'd seen since the principle had gone all monstery. Glaring apathetically down at the pale boy, he clenched his fists. From the spaces between the knuckles of his fingers three blades burst forth on either hand.

Toad cowered before the menacing man in his path.

"No, let him go, Logan." Both looked to see Xavier rolled out on the second floor terrace. Giving the teen a final glare, he retracted his metal coated claws and stepped to the side, gesturing lazily. Toad needed no further explanation.

"…Place's psycho…" they heard before he left ear shot.

"I heard there wuz trouble brewin'," Logan retorted. "But then maybe it was just stink boy over there."

Xavier just smiled at the man's humor. "It's good to see you, old friend. We missed you." Despite his normally frosty nature, the Canadian former weapon cracked a wry grin.

Glancing upward, "Why don't you come down, Naruto," the bald man insisted. Dropping silently from the branches overhead, the young blonde and Logan regarded one another.

"Logan, this is Naruto. Naruto, Logan." Logan grunted, the blonde responding with a nod.

"Nice ta meetcha, kid."

"Likewise."

AN/ Again, throwing another out there just to see what you think.


	2. Adjusting To Lunacy

X Evo: Naruto's New Journey

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or X-Men.

Speaking Normally

_Thoughts (Personal or Psychic)_

**Demonic/Empowered Voice**

Chapter 2, Adjusting To Lunacy

As the week started back up, he almost thought that nothing else would happen. Things became interesting though when the Professor took Jean with him on a morning trip to a neighboring county. A new mutant had emerged during the night. Kitty Pryde, able to become intangible.

It had been the plan to offer her a place at the school.

From what he'd garnered, she'd turned them down.

At the same time, another mutant was detected. A far less…good natured…one. Lance Alvers, a student at the same school as Kitty. His was the ability to control tectonic movement in his immediate vicinity. In layman's, he could create localized earthquakes and tremors.

After quite the harrowing tale of deception and finding oneself, the young woman moved into the institute within a few days, transferring to Bayville.

Unfortunately, adjustment was not coming easy for her.

And this last…excursion…while it had cemented her with them all, it had aroused questions in the nebulous blonde.

"Knock, knock."

Xavier peered up from his book. Leaning in the door was the more reclusive of his charges. "Ah, Naruto. Come in, please," waving him to the armchair across from him. "Is there something I can help you with?" he asked once the young man was seated. Out of respect, he remained out of his mind, but he didn't need his psychic abilities to sense the conflict within the teen.

Sitting in the chair, he was leant forward, elbows resting on his knees. "I can't think that you didn't know, Professor."

"Pardon?" the bald man asked, truly perplexed.

"When we were tracking Rogue, I caught a scent other than hers. Logan didn't say anything, but I could see he recognized it." Xavier was beginning to catch on. "The thing is I recognized it, too." Looking up from the floor, "Who is Principal Darkholme?"

Xavier frowned. There wasn't much point left in maintaining appearances. It was easy to forget that this young man was far more intuitive and experienced than most several times his age.

"I would ask that you not tell any of the others," the professor began. "I do not think they're ready to hear it." Naruto gave a frown of his own, but gave a small nod. Xavier sighed. "The woman you know as Raven Darkholme is a mutant. A shape-shifter by the name of Mystique. She can change her physical appearance to that of anyone else." Realization dawned on the teen's features, accompanied by wide, wary eyes. "She believes in a less than perfect future for mutants. As such, I believe she's been gathering a following of young mutants of her own."

"Tolansky…Alvers…" Naruto interrupted. "And now Rogue." Xavier nodded, face grim.

"The school is something of a neutral territory," Xavier added. "As long as Mystique needs to maintain her cover, she cannot act towards any of you." The fog was clearing.

"…I see," the blonde mused. "The others won't like this. They'll find out eventually."

Xavier nodded. "Indeed, but I would rather they not have to worry about it just yet. Their lives are difficult enough already. I had rather hoped to keep you in the dark as well, and give you a sense of a normal teenage life."

Chuckling, the blonde climbed to his feet. "Normal is all a matter of perspective, professor. Thank you." Turning to leave he made it to the door, opening it, before turning back to Xavier. I won't say anything, but you'll have to sooner or later.

"Indeed."

"Goodnight, professor."

"Goodnight."

He couldn't help but regard the principal differently. Whenever he looked at her, he would remember the professor's words. On the other hand, now that he had an idea of what to look for, he was noticing her moments of breaking character.

Most often that was when she was really pissed.

The air was a little brisk, but still warm enough that Logan took the students outside for their morning Tai-Chi warmup. Well, today it was tai-chi. It varied from that to yoga, to calisthenics. Leg raised, arms overhead, he led them into a tree stance.

Kitty was having the most trouble by far.

"That girl is not a tree," Logan growled to Ororo.

"Rr, I don't get why we have to do this?" Kitty mumbled brusquely.

"It's to help with muscle control, coordination, and patience," Logan shot back stiffly.

Frowning at not being able to stay upright, she sent an annoyed look towards the indefinable blonde, "Then why isn't Naruto doing it?" she asked him.

Precise to her claims, the spiky-haired blonde was standing on his hands, eyes closed. Briefly looking over the kid, Logan snorted. "'Cause he knows what he's doin'. None of y'all 've had any training." The blonde, engrossed in his own thoughts, ignorant of an audience, shifted his weight until he retracted his right arm, supporting himself entirely with his left, his movements slow and methodical.

Logan gave the gathered teens a playful smirk, "Tell you what. Any of you can do that, can skip the morning warm-ups for the rest of the week." Temptation stirred, but, after a second look at the blonde who'd started doing one-armed pushups from his upside-down state, they decided against it.

Not that it stopped the occasional grumblings.

While the Professor was understanding that he had nothing to his name in this world, he still felt a need to cover his own expenses, so started exploring avenues of earning some cash. As he wasn't averse to physical labor or getting dirty, that left some openings that most usually steered clear from.

So, he picked up the occasional odd jobs, mainly from fliers or on the post-it board in town.

It wasn't too much. One week, he'd worked helping a local moving company. It didn't pay too much, but he didn't mind. Though he was more than once tempted to use clones when no one was looking. The other weekend, he'd spent all day Saturday and Sunday cleaning up someone's back yard, and it was a fair-sized back yard, that had become overgrown over a long vacation. Feeling industrious, he even cleaned the gutters. Though, he regretted it when he stumbled upon a bluejay nest.

The damn birds were vicious.

It was at the end of the month that he had finally acquired enough that he was ready to call it "seed money". Seeing as he was a minor, with no financial records or anything, it meant that he would require the help of his legal guardian. Well, as far as forged documents stated, that was Xavier.

The professor had been a little dubious towards his plan at first, but after some decent explanation decided to grant the blonde a chance to "dabble".

"I'm afraid I still don't understand this," Xavier sighed in defeat. Drinking his morning coffee, he was going over the latest stock market readings. For some, odd, reason, the boy had the keenest instincts when it came to money. Starting with only a few hundred dollars, it had grown exponentially over the week. He was by no means "wealthy", but it was still a sizeable chunk of money for someone his age.

Grinning at the printouts, "Yeah, well, the proof's all there." Sipping his orange juice, he stared at the glass. "Majority of the time, I seem to pick winners. Jiraiya used to say I had more of a knack for gambling than-" he winced.

Xavier noted the twitch. Home was still a hard subject with the teen. More, it was that there was still a modicum of pain even in his few happy memories.

"I'll have set a bank account up for you by tomorrow," he interjected in hopes of jarring him away from painful memories.

Naruto grinned weakly. "Thanks, Professor."

"Any plans for this new cash flow?"

The blonde leaned back in his chair, a thoughtful expression on his face. "At first, it was so I wouldn't need to keep relying on your goodwill, Professor," he admitted.

"I understand, but it is there to give."

"I know, and thanks." Sighing, "The truth is half the time I'm bored out of my mind, Professor."

"Pardon?"

The blonde shared a wry glance with the bald man. "I've got a lot of untapped energy, Professor. I used to sleep maybe six hours, now I can't do so for more than four or five a night," he explained. "Back home, I had to be far more active than this. I mean, it's nice, but-"

"I understand. You need something to occupy your time." He had noticed on more than one occasion that the blonde was the last to retire and the first to wake. His people were, using a motoring metaphor, high performance machines compared to the rest of them, and from what he could tell the blonde was further amped up.

Naruto nodded. "Reading only goes so far, I need to **do** something. I was talking with Scott the other day, and he got me to thinking about rebuilding a car." He snorted in derision. "I can get anywhere I want faster, but since I need that to stay under wraps, it could be useful."

"And time consuming," Xavier noted. Naruto shrugged, smiling innocently. Silent for a moment, the telepath considered the options. "I will allow it." The blonde gave a small nod of victory. "However," the professor cautioned. "Should your grades begin to slip, I will prohibit these extracurricular activities."

An ultimatum, but a fair one.

"And one further proviso."

"Hmm?"

Xavier gave a cunning smirk. "Do you think you could recommend some stock advice?"

After spending a few days reading some maintenance manuals, he decided to get to work. At night, he scoured the junkyard, when there weren't any prying eyes. And the next day, before school, he set up buying the trashed vehicle.

Jean and Logan pulled into the garage late one evening after checking on a new mutant. Weekend and all, there wasn't too much to worry about being out too late. He'd heard about it, but had decided to stay behind. After all, today was the day his "car" was dropped off. He'd chosen completely at random, hoping solely for the most complicated one.

It arrived just after lunch.

The saving grace was that it was a Saturday. So he had the afternoon to identify the pile of scrap, which was fairly easy. The difficult part had been finding books in regards to taking it apart and rebuilding it.

This was what he liked about working with his hands. Actually doing something. He was covered in grease and bits of rust, but he enjoyed every second. It was something he'd never done before.

This was interesting.

Engine unbolted from the frame, he lifted it free. It may have been too heavy for most, but it wasn't too difficult for him to handle. Not that he wanted to keep holding onto it. Stripping it down to the frame, he put anything too damaged for service in a trash pile. The frame would require some work. It had been left in disrepair until only the rust would have it, leading up to its stay in the junk yard.

"You look happy," Jean noted, exiting the X-van.

He'd actually opened up more to the others in the little over a month since they'd met him. He was nowhere near his once boisterous self, but even he noted the healthier interactions were helping.

"And he doesn't," Naruto countered. Indeed, Logan looked surlier than usual. Setting the engine down, he wiped his hands on his jeans.

"What's this?" she asked, but Wolverine beat him to an answer.

Taking one glance at the beat up hunk, "Mustang. Late sixties… Sixty-six," he mused, running a hand over the tarnished hood.

Nodding, the blonde turned back to look over his work, arms crossed over his chest. "Yeah, I'm hoping rebuilding it'll keep me busy for a while."

Jean grinned. "Better not admit to having too much free time or Kitty 'll ask you for favors." It was true. The girl occasionally tried to pawn off chores on others. And she constantly hounded Scott for rides.

"I hear you," he conceded. Glancing once more to the one-day-care-again, "Hopefully, this'll keep me busy for a month or so."

"Think it'll take longer 'n that, kid," Logan countered.

Naruto just smirked back. "Believe what you want," he replied, words laden with amusement. "I've already found some good parts at the junkyard." And he would need every one to fix all the rust eaten pieces.

Shaking his head, Logan walked out of the garage. "Good luck, kid." Out of sight, "Let's go, red," he called. Jean jumped, remembering that she was supposed to report to Xavier with Logan.

"Oops, gotta go!" she exclaimed, hurrying after. "See you in the morning," she offered before leaving sight.

"Night," he called casually after. Now then… Turning back to his "project", he went over all that he had time to do before he had to get to bed. Sure, he had the oddest luck, but most of all…he was just awesome.

Regardless of his relative lateness to bed, and further to sleep, he still woke, fully refreshed, hours ahead of most everyone else.

Xavier taught not only control over powers and teamwork, but also a certain level of self-reliance. So, besides training and school work, they had chores.

According to the list, today was his day for making breakfast. So he started pulling together makings.

He'd barely thrown the sausages on when Logan walked in.

"Coffee's fresh," he offered. "Get it while it's hot." Logan grunted, but took him up on it, pouring himself a mug of the dark, aromatic liquid.

Aside from himself, Logan was the next earliest riser. Offhand, he wondered if it was due to their healing factors. Not that that wasn't the only possibility.

"Paper?" the X-Man asked.

"Already on it." Logan's brow crinkled in confusion as the blonde made no move to leave the oversized stove.

The swinging door into the kitchen and small dining area opened garnering the attention of both occupants. The morning mail pinned under one arm, a second blonde entered, open newspaper in hand. To his credit, Logan was only marginally surprised. Chuck'd mentioned something like this, but he hadn't seen it until now. Actually… Sniffing the air, he realized that the one at the stove had a far more muted scent. At first, he had ignored it, thinking it was overpowered by the aroma of the coffee and other strong breakfast smells.

"Nice trick."

"Skill. And thank you," the teen answered, sitting at the island. Finished perusing the paper, he passed it off, sans the puzzle section.

He may not be a genius, but, yes, he was that bored.

"Sausages are almost ready," the blonde manning the griddle section of the stove announced.

The real one nodded before several more duplicates appeared at his side. No orders given, the copies walked over. One pulled a large plate from the cupboards for the sausages, while the other started cracking eggs into a bowl. It had to be enough to make pancakes to feed a near dozen people, so he didn't stop until most of the carton was emptied. Proportionally adding other ingredients… Safe to say it was good that he was using a large mixing bowl. Satisfied that he had enough, the clone didn't bother looking for the wisk. Walking over to the original, it wordlessly offered the bowl.

Dropping his pencil, he took it, and, after a second of concentrating, the contents of the bowl started swirling, solids and liquids mixing.

Logan noted this activity and the look of strain on the teen's face.

"Somethin' the matter?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Just a control exercise," the blonde gasped, stopping now that the contents were thoroughly mixed. When the clone relieved him of the bowl, he was left staring at his hand, flexing it. It still took a lot of effort to slow the rasengan down without losing its form. Still, one-handed was a step up from his earlier years.

Logan dismissed it, turning back to his paper, "…Just hurry up with the grub, will ya?" Naruto let out a coughing laugh.

"Sure thing, old timer."

"Mmn, that smells delicious," Ororo murmured, stepping through the door far more gracefully than Logan had in his earlier shuffle.

"Tea?" one of the clones asked. He'd noticed that she was more partial to it than coffee.

"Thank you," she responded, receiving the mug.

"Kiss ass," Naruto mumbled, just low enough that no one who would reprimand him would be able to reprimand him.

"I heard that," the clone snapped.

"What's your point?" he countered before ignoring the copy's sassing.

"Y'know, talkin' to yourself is a sign of insanity," the hairy man idly commented.

"Yeah, ain't it great?" the teen retorted, snickering. "Don't mind my clones, they tend to lean towards different aspects of my personality." Nodding to the beverage-bearing clone, "I'll leave it to you to figure out what the apple polisher over there is based on." The clone had a few choice words for him on that subject in response to his ribbing. At one point, calling him "a real frigid dude."

"Don't dis the master copy, clone boy," he lectured. (A funny line from another author's fanfic)

Despite the incredulous look, Ororo shook with restrained laughter at the antics of the blonde teen and his duplicate, hiding a wide smile behind her cup. And Logan actually smirked behind his paper.

"I see all the early risers are here," the professor offered, rolling through the already opened door. "Good morning." Checking his watch, "Though I don't suppose the other children will be abed much longer."

Yeah, Kitty get up before eight on a weekend? That was likely. Naruto had guessed that when she first moved into the institute.

Looking to the clock, "Yeah, I'll lay off cooking the rest up 'til the others get up," Naruto offered from the table. Given that it was already seven, they shouldn't be much longer. It may have been a weekend, but they all had things to do. Noting the industrious clones, especially the one pouring him some coffee, the professor took it all in stride. This wasn't too unusual in this house, er, mansion.

"Don't strain yerself," Logan snickered.

"And afterwards, I want you to work on your flying control," Ororo broke in.

"Flight or hovering?" he asked warily.

Ororo smiled with a tinge of wickedness. "Hovering." Naruto groaned. Flight was just so much easier than hovering.

Two hours. Two fricking hours.

He supposed it was fitting. Control would always come back to bite him in the ass.

Resting from the strain of concentrating for so long, he let himself be lulled by the familiar meditation taught to him by Fukusaku. The nature energy was…different…from back home. It was there, but so very weak. Not from absence, but in expression. It was like comparing broths. The thickness…consistency…wasn't quite right. It wasn't enough that he could activate Sage mode to its fullest, but he could still gather a little. He couldn't use toad katas or increase his strength…but he could still enhance his senses.

Pulling a sliver of the once wrathful chakra from deep within, he let it caress him.

Xavier once again noted something peculiar. He'd seen the blonde meditate on more than occasion, but on the times he'd done so outside, he'd noticed some things.

He'd brushed them off, thinking he had been seeing things, but now he was actually witnessing it.

Since he had sat down and closed his eyes, the surrounding blades of grass started swaying in the wind. Except there was no wind. Even the nearest tree was acting similarly, as if aroused by his presence.

This bore mentioning and further study.

He had been working on his soon-to-be car when the Professor rolled in, a question on his lips. An interesting one at that.

"Huh?" he asked, sliding himself forward so that his head poked out from under the frame.

Taking the path of patience, Xavier asked again, this time elaborating. "Earlier, I noticed you meditating."

"Mhm."

"Your actions seemed to prompt interesting…reactions…from the environment."

"Huh?"

"The grass, the tree," Xavier tried to explain, realizing he wasn't too certain how to explain something like this. "Are you aware of just how much your…chakra, as you call it…affects plants?"

Okay, he understood enough of that. "Well, yeah. I've told you all. Chakra is life energy. And when I pull on that…other chakra…it's even more potent."

"Have you ever tried cultivating abilities with plants?"

"No. I mean, there were a few people back home who could do it. Very few. But for them it was a genetic ability. Me…it's just, the plants like my energy," he finished with a shrug. Difficult for his position under the car.

"Still, I would like you to try and foster that connection. There is a chance you could turn that affinity into a potentially worthwhile talent."

Sighing, he gave in. "Sure, Professor."

Once the wheelchair using man left, he was back under the car. The axels were in disrepair, but were in surprisingly good shape, all things considered. Reaching out from under the car, he waited for a second before a wrench was dropped into his hand. Damn, but he loved mastery of the shadow clone.

Tomorrow was Monday. His clones had already flagged some excellent parts at the junkyard. If everything worked out right, he'd have the superstructure done by the week's end.

A few mysteries were cleared up as of Monday morning's classes. There was a new student. One that Darkholme showed fondness for. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. From what little he knew, this was the mutant that the Professor had sent Logan and Jean to scout. Looks like Mystique got to him first.

Least he knew why the short man was so pissed that night.

Granted, Matthews was a royal prick, more so for insulting the oversized teen instead of helping, but, acting true to form, he jeered back. Tossing the relatively smaller teen away, Fred gave into his anger, ripping a series of lockers from the wall.

When he ripped the lockers from the walls…he had an idea of what his 'talent' was.

"Don't you…make fun…OF ME!" the teen bellowed, the lockers hoisted, and slightly crushed, in his arms and about to use them to hammer Duncan Matthews into the floor.

He came onto the scene just as Jean ran over to him.

"Hi, uh, you must be new here." The massive teen turned around to see who had spoken. "I'm Jean Grey," she introduced politely.

Naruto grinned. Jean was something else. Okay, she was off limits, but still… She'd seen a problem and immediately gone for the diplomatic approach.

Looking embarrassed at being caught flatfooted, "Ehehe, oh, yeah. I am." Duncan, taking advantage of this distraction, slipped away. "New, I mean."

Jean laughed good-naturedly. "I figured. Welcome to Bayville. So, what do your friends call you."

Dropping the lockers back where he'd ripped them from, in albeit less than prime condition, "Don't know," he answered back in confusion. "Never had any. My name is Fred. Fred Dukes," he offered, shaking her vastly smaller hand. He winced as the lockers he'd mangled creaked.

"Well, Fred, I'd just like to apologize for Duncan. He can be a real idiot sometimes." Spotting the paper on the ground, she bent and retrieved it. "Hey, did you need any help figuring this out?"

"Well, yes, uh, please."

"Okay, hm, your first class is…right over there," she answered, gesturing.

"Hunh, thanks!"

"Don't worry, the first day's always the roughest," she explained before walking off to her own class. "It gets better. See you around."

The itinerary crinkled in his large hand. "It sure will," he mumbled in agreement, looking quite pleased with himself.

"I still don't understand what the big deal is?"

Scott glared, gloomily, back at the blonde. "You don't have drama class," he countered. "If you did, you'd understand."

"And it has nothing to do with your partner?" Kurt proposed, smirking, visage altered thanks to his watch gizmo.

"Who?" Naruto asked innocently enough, pulling a book from his locker and closing it.

"…Rogue."

The blonde paused before nodding. "I see your point."

"I've got to play a romantic scene with a girl who thinks we tried to kill her." Yeah, what do you say to something like that?

He'd left a pair of clones to go over his chemistry notes while he joined in practice with the others. Jean hadn't gotten back yet, and Scott was studying with Rogue for their drama class. So, anyone on the grounds was subject to go through Logan's and the Professor's training regime.

Today, it consisted of keep away, using powers. Honestly, the game was pretty chancy. Kitty could phase out. Kurt could teleport. And while he was for all intensive purposes more powerful, their abilities balked his own.

Kurt could teleport forever out of his reach.

Kitty just had to stay intangible.

Kurt had the ball, but Kitty, phasing through him, scooped it up and ran.

"Ya gotta watch yourself, elf," Logan chided.

She didn't get far though. Phasing through a tree, she was caught by surprise by a low hanging branch and was knocked down. The ball fell from her hands and bounced right into Kurt's arms as he ported into its path.

"It's mine now, Kitty," he teased.

"But how long can ya keep it?" Logan called.

Indeed, the sky seemed to grow dark. Looking up, Nightcrawler's eyes widened at the blonde's raining from the sky. "Dogpile!" they chorused, laughing.

"Aaah!" The fuzzy dude barely remembered to port away, and even then it was almost too late.

"Nuts," one of the clones pouted from under the clone mountain.

Kurt reappeared a few yards up, on the branch of a tree. "Watch where you're portin'," the X-Man cautioned. True to his words, the branch snapped.

Jumping, Kitty phased through him, grabbing the ball, and yanking his tail on the way out, adding insult to injury.

"Hehahah," she giggled triumphantly at the seething boy.

Logan groaned in embarrassment. "What kinda move is that?" and palmed his face.

Xavier didn't look as disappointed though. "Innovation. Adaptation. It's what they're here to learn," he reasoned. "I also noticed the limb Kitty ran into."

Brow quirked. "What about it?" Logan asked.

"I'm quite certain it wasn't there a minute ago."

"You asked me to dabble, Professor," Naruto confessed from the other side of Logan. "So I picked up some stuff."

"We'll discuss it further, later."

"If it works, why question it?"

Logan glared at the blonde among them. He wasn't even going to try and argue that he was supposed to be getting the ball. Both tensed though when the professor seized up in his wheelchair. A second later, "Jean…she's been kidnapped."

Logan started dishing out orders. "You, elf, get Cyclops. I gotta ride."

"She was at the school last," Naruto called after him before turning to the professor. "I'll head there and try to track her signature."

"Go," Xavier agreed, and the blonde disappeared in a blur of speed.

With Scott and Rogue:

"Do you like me, Kate?"

"Pardone moi? I cannot tell. What is "like me"?"

"An angel is like you, Kate. And you are like an angel."

Rogue let a small, amused smile cross her lips. "Eheh. The girls 're right. You are a charmer."

A little embarrassed, "Look, I'm just reading the lines, okay."

She brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes. "Yeah, I know. It's just sometimes I wish-"

"Yeah? Wish what?"

"Wish…I could get close to somebody," she explained weakly, before fire returned to her words. "But you know what happens when I do."

"Bamf!"

Both teens jerked at the incoming teleportation, Kurt appearing on the tabletop before them in all his blue-furred, uniformed glory.

"Whoa, tender moment here? Sorry to interrupt."

"I swear. He's like an annoying little brother," Rogue huffed, earning a look of hurt bafflement from Kurt. His response was to stick his tongue out at her.

Scott knew that for him to come for him was a sign of an emergency, but without his image inducer meant something big was going on. "What's the problem?"

"Jean's been nabbed."

"What?" Scott's hands shot to grab Kurt by the shoulders, none too gently either.

"Wow! Easy on the exquisite costume, mein freund! Wolverine's on the scent, so's Naruto, but I'm supposed to collect you," and finally managed to persuade the distraught teen to let go of him.

"Rrggh!" He slammed his fists down onto the picnic table. He already had someone in mind. "Blob…If he's hurt her I'll-" He looked across to Rogue who seemed to do her best to not show she was even there. "Do you know anything about this?" he asked desperately, but still angry.

"No," she answered, but she was stung that he so easily thought she would be involved in something like this. "But even if I did I wouldn't tell you."

"Then I hope you can live with your conscience," Scott shot coolly, managing to reign in his anger.

Laying his hand on Kurt's shoulder, "Teleporter to maximum, Mister Wagner!"

Catching his drift, Kurt saluted jauntily. "Aye, captain!"

"Engage!"

"Bamf!" and they were gone, leaving Rogue to stew on this turn of events. On words spoken. Words unspoken. Blame laid. Times like this…she wished more than ever for the normal life she couldn't have.

Logan pulled up to the school a few minutes after he had arrived. Like the blonde, the orange clad X-man had immediately been drawn to the wrecked bit of construction. Appearing next to him, "They were both over there," the blonde supplied, reaffirming what was already guessed. Logan turned to him, listening. "One was Jean, the other was the new kid, Fred Dukes."

"Know where it goes yet?"

"Workin' on it." The blonde was different when "on the job". He wasn't quiet like he'd been lately, but he still wasn't verbose. Anything he said had a purpose. "Also, there was the smell of blood." Logan tensed. "Not much. It's little more than a scratch worth, but I'd guess it's Jean's. Her scent surrounds his leaving the area, but it's weakened so I'm guessing she was carried, meaning she was unconscious."

Logan grit his teeth behind the helmet. "Good work."

Back at the Institute:

"I've been in mental contact with Jean, but she has no idea where she is," Xavier explained to his three present students. "All I can tell is she…and Blob…are somewhere in this area," he elucidated, motioning to the highlighted area on the monitor.

"Then let's move," Scott barked, taking command.

Within a minute, two vehicles left. Scott, in his sports car, and the professor and Kitty in the X-van.

Leaping, he was up the side and on the roof in seconds. Judging by the faded scent of ozone and metal…this was a smelting place of some sort. Well, at one time anyway. It was abandoned apparently.

He heard Logan pulling up down below. Once more, this went to prove that he didn't need a vehicle…but that was a topic of perusal for later.

"I've found him. At the old iron works on the south end. I'm going in," Logan reported over his communicator as he loomed ever closer to the warehouse that was coming up.

"_Logan, wait for backup_," Xavier chirped.

"_I'm already here_," Naruto's voice whispered over the communicator.

"Where?" Logan and Xavier asked.

"_Roof_," he answered simply.

"See anything?'

Peering in through the open section of rust eaten roofing, "Dukes has the place decked out. I can't see Jean, but I can smell her…and I can sense her. She's in a back office." He went silent as Dukes came out, giving him a view of flickering lighting.

Candles.

The electricity worked…

Oh… He almost slapped himself. The big guy had kidnapped Jean and made it into a date.

That was just sad. In a pathetic way.

Carrying the old record player with the greatest care, Fred looked absolutely bursting with pride at his clever thinking. He considered this to be quite the thoughtful move for a date.

The door, slashed repeatedly, burst open, Wolverine barreling through, snarling. Immediately jumping on the teen behemoth, he started laying into him.

Annoyed and bewildered by this, Fred threw the enraged attacker off him.

"Raarh!" Wolverine snarled back before charging.

Unfortunately, the record player had been sacrificed in the removal. It now lay in pieces not too far from the seemingly feral man.

In a move of surprising swiftness for someone his size, Blob dodged the incoming attack. Grabbing the nearest heavy object, an old, rather heavy, turbine, he ripped it free of the floor and threw it at Wolverine.

"Snikt, snikt." But there was little the adamantium bearer could do against such mass.

Hearing the ruckus, Jean struggled against her bonds.

Confused at not finding the man behind the big piece of machinery he'd thrown at him, Blob looked around. Only looking up in time to catch sight of Wolverine as he landed on him. Grabbing his arms, he used his greater size to hold him off of him.

Struggling, Jean focused her power, trying to bend the pipe wrapped around her. It bent…just a little. It was just too thick. Not that her still splitting headache didn't make it difficult.

Having enough, Blob decided to try a wrestling move he'd seen on tv. Belly flopping, he pinned the X-man beneath him.

"_Can't breathe,_" Logan thought, gasping, unable to get any leverage against the teen's immovable bulk.

"She's my friend. You _can't_ take her!"

The pipe was actually starting to break, but her already low energy was fading from the exertion.

"Need a hand?"

She looked up only to see Naruto drop from a removed tile in the ceiling.

"Naruto."

"Cue the hero," he chuckled. "While Logan keeps "Romeo" busy, how 'bout we get you out of here?"

A red beam shot over Blob's back.

A warning shot.

"We're just here to give her a way out," Cyclops explained before his voice took on a dangerous edge. "Through you, if necessary." Talking done, he leveled a blast at the teen. Blob seemed to struggle with it, but blocked the beam with his forearm, the red energy not seeming to bother him all that much. Smirking confidently, he started moving against the beam's power, and back to his feet. Grabbing the unconscious Wolverine, he threw him at Cyclops. Not wanting to hurt the man, Cyclops ended his attack, but was broadsided when Logan collided with him. They were thrown out the door and into Logan's bike. Groaning, Scott lost the battle for consciousness, his visor sent flying.

Light steps approached before a pale hand gently ran over Scott's face.

Marching heavily back towards the room where his date should be waiting, Dukes looked downright grumpy. Opening the door, he managed to do so only just before a file cabinet caught him full in the face. Resisting the telekinetic push behind the object, he raised it over him so he could openly glare at his "date". Except, she wasn't restrained anymore. She was standing. And beside her… Wasn't he a kid from school? Like it mattered right now. "Nobody respects me," he declared. "And you're the worst. Rrr, you pretended to be my friend." Not that Jean was too hurt by his outburst at this point. He threw the file cabinet back at her.

Jean probably could have stopped or deflected it, but he could see she'd had a rough time of it. So he stepped in. Catching the cabinet in one hand, using chakra to hold onto it, he sent a warning glance back at Blob. "You don't wanna go this road with me, Dukes."

Furious, but no longer in the mood for a fight, Blob retreated, seething all the way. For ten feet anyway. Then he grabbed a heavy machine and hefted it before turning back to the shabby office. A red energy beam splashing over his back made him drop the hunk of machine. Shoving it in the direction of the attack in retaliation, it shot past Rogue, her eyes glowing red.

"Leave her alone, ya yahoo!"

"Watcha gonna do ta me? Make me wear bad makeup?" he countered scathingly. Rogue just smirked back. He made the mistake of underestimating her.

"Didn't Mystique tell you what my power is?" she asked, walking toward him.

"No. 'Cause I don't care." And he threw a punch, followed by others in attempts of pummeling her. He made a mistake though in letting her get so close. She grabbed his arm. He winced at the draining sensation.

"MY power is YOUR power, and I can take more than one!" she retorted, before using her newfound strength to judo flip him into the rafters, followed by an optic blast which carried him farther and into a pile of machine parts and rubbish.

Jean looked on in awe.

"Not bad," Naruto mumbled in appreciation.

But Dukes wasn't done yet. Bursting most of the way free, he looked almost maddened. "I got too much power, even for you! You can't hurt me! I'M THE BLOB!"

"Nah, yer just garbage that wanted a date. Now tell you what: I'm takin' you out!"

"Good one," Naruto snickered.

Blob jumped at rogue, but she was ready. She caught him full on with an optic blast. At first, he seemed to float there, before being launched back, through the roof and away. The heavyset teen was sent near a mile away…into the landfill.

Everyone else had finally made it, even if they were too late to be of any assistance.

"There you go," Rogue said, replacing Scott's visor. "I only took a short term dose of your power. You should be back to normal soon." Regardless, Scott shook his head to clear the fog.

"You are like an angel, Kate." Whether it was because he was delirious, or a show of friendship, no one could tell.

"My name's not Kate," she objected uneasily. "And I'm no angel."

"But you helped us," Jean broke in. "Why?"

"I don't know…I just don't know!" Shoving past Nightcrawler, she ran.

"Hey, wait!" but Logan caught Jean's arm.

"Easy, red. Let her go."

"But she-"

"She ain't ready."

"That's the tragic part of this business. You can try to save someone all you want," Naruto offered from the sides, watching the girl leave their sight. "In the end, whether or not they can be saved…is up to them. All you can do is hope that the person you try to save let's you."

"Dude, that was deep!"

Naruto grinned back at Nightcrawler.

"But accurate nonetheless," the professor agreed. "Give her time, that's all we can do."

AN/ A toast! A toast to the schmucks who flame and the authors who couldn't care less!

In closing, a few notes of interest:

1) I won't be making it a Naruto/Kitty/Rogue. There aren't that many Naruto/XMen crossovers, but most seem to be of that sort, and it's getting old.

2) Pairing is Naruto x Wanda, but there could be some room for Rogue, it all depends on how it all plays out.

3) I haven't yet decided what will happen should Rogue actually touch Naruto, that is yet to be decided. Nothing/Something? I'll figure it out.


	3. Just A Day In The Life

X Evo: Naruto's New Journey

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or X-Men.

Speaking Normally

_Thoughts (Personal or Psychic)_

**Demonic/Empowered Voice**

AN/ Weird. I was writing the 4th chapter when I looked...and did so again, to find that I'd never posted the 3rd chapter. Oops. Post number 4 in a week or so.

Chapter 3: Just A Day In The Life

The next few weeks were fairly uneventful.

By their standards.

At one point though, Ororo's nephew had come to join them at the institute…somewhat willingly. Hey, it was better than a cell.

* * *

"Like, where's this new guy?" Kitty asked. Today they were eating a more formal breakfast in the actual dining room instead of the kitchen.

"Still sleeping," the professor answered. "He had a rather difficult evening." To those that understood nuance, that one sentence spoke volumes.

"Bamf!" Kurt ported in to land in his seat. Inhaling the wonderful breakfast smells, "Mmm-aah, I love the smell of bacon in the morning."

Last night still on his mind, Scott replaced his milk glass before turning to the professor. "I think he really knows who trashed those lockers. Did he tell you?"

Xavier shook his head before tapping it. "No, and I'm not going to pry. He'll tell us when he's ready."

Growling lightly, Logan scooped up some eggs. "You tell me, he's looking to settle that score personally. Pass the sausages, red."

"Gotta agree with him on that one," Naruto added. "There's a lot to say about the power of a grudge." Spooning some oatmeal, he paused in taking a bite. "The bastard and I-"

"Naruto, language," Xavier chastised.

"Sorry, Professor. Habit. Still, it got to the point where we nearly killed one another a few times."

The others, Kitty in particular, looked horrified.

"What?" he asked, oblivious. "Some things run deep is all."

Meanwhile, concentrating, Jean levitated the tray of cooked meat over to Logan.

"Ew, that stuff, like totally plugs your arteries you know," Kitty icked, eager to get away from the subject of grudge matches.

Smirking at the girl, and ignoring her, the man reached for the tray. Extending the claws on his left hand, he snared several sausages. "I appreciate your concern." Looking back to Xavier, "Trust me on this, Chuck. I may not be able to read minds. But I know what a boy's thinkin' about when he's been wronged. ELF!" Groaning, "How many times I gotta tell ya, ask and it'll get passed to ya."

Hanging from the light fixture so he could get the pancakes, "Sorry. I didn't want to interrupt you." Porting back, he landed in his chair.

"That's better. Mind your manners."

* * *

Things did eventually simmer down though.

Evan was cleared after nailing the real culprit.

The fact that they were rivals left Naruto in a bad mood for the better part of a week though. Whether the others noticed or not, he didn't know or care. It was his past. Not there's.

* * *

"Well?" Logan asked.

Naruto just chuckled. "Well… With some help from Scott-"

Logan coughed.

"I know, and you, what with the whole rebuilding the engine," the blonde placated, hands up.

Those that were interested were gathered outside the garage where Naruto had been keeping his work in progress under lock and key for the last week.

"I must admit," Xavier mused. "I'm interested in seeing how your project turned out."

"I live to exceed expectations, Professor." Pressing the remote, the door started lifting. "Oh, and Logan?"

"Hm?"

"Twenty-_seven_ days."

The clawed X-man grumbled incomprehensibly.

Parked at an angle for presentation purposes, it gleamed against the light.

"That is so cool!" Kitty cooed, her purposes for being there in hopefully bumming future rides. That is, she wanted to make sure if she did bum a ride that it would be one worth the effort.

"Awesome!" Kurt and Evan chorused.

Black almost to the point where light seemed to bend off of it, it had twin stripes of red painted on the top from nose to tail, all in classic rendition. Fully restored by hand, a nineteen sixty-six Ford Mustang hard top.

Scott's eyes bugged a little. "Wait, this' it? What'd you use a time machine or something?" It was hard to see the car before them now and the one that's been there weeks prior as the same one. "What a wax job… How'd you do it?"

Winking, "Secret." Stepping away, he let the others have their chances to go over it.

"I must say I'm quite impressed," Xavier praised, rolling up beside him. "This is outstanding work."

"Yeah," the blonde accepted, scratching his head. "There's just one problem."

"And what is that?"

"Now what?"

Xavier had trouble holding back a laugh at the teen.

"Maybe I could try my luck with another one," he mused. This time Xavier did laugh.

"Hey, kid," Logan called.

"Hm? Yeah?"

"Come on. 'S time for some driver's ed." Okay, the evil laugh wasn't really necessary.

* * *

On the upside, it only took him a week before Logan and Ororo agreed that he was good enough to ask for a license. The downside? He discovered the marvel that is insurance.

Blood sucking vultures.

His nature manipulation, at least that's what he called it, was coming along nicely. Control was still an issue, but he could…encourage…growth in plants and trees.

It had been a push, but he had grown a fifty something foot oak in less than ten minutes for their viewing. Ororo and Xavier seemed interested, though Logan was harder to impress.

It was still a little difficult controlling already existing plants. But, then again, he assumed Yamato had had to practice at one point too.

On the upside, not requiring handsigns but actual force of will… It was really cool.

* * *

Poking at his lunch, Naruto was really starting to consider brown-bagging.

Shaking his head, he threw down his spork. "Hey, dude, you gonna drink your milk?" Evan asked from the end of the picnic table. Resting his head in his hands, he sent the teen a lazy glance.

"It's yours if you want it," he offered, nudging the carton along.

"Thanks, man."

To his left was Jean, on the other side were Scott and Kurt, and on the ends were Kitty, directly to his right, and Evan on his left. The latter having a near dozen empty milk cartons in front of him as he continued to slug Naruto's milk. The blonde guessed, what with his bone generating mutation, that he would need to maintain high levels of calcium in his system.

It reminded him of Kimimaru. Not that he knew all that much about the deceased albino, bone user. He wondered if it was the same with him.

"Go to Duncan Matthews' party?" Scott immediately shot that plan down. Of course, Naruto doubted it was in anyway related to the angry tensing of his jaw. "Nah, I don't think so," he immediately negated, shaking his head.

Done with his latest carton, "Are you gonna finish that moo-juice?" Evan asked.

Ever the generous spirit, Jean handed him hers. "You can have mine," she politely offered before turning back to Scott, the de facto decision maker. "Come on, it might be fun," she pleaded, wanting him to lighten up.

Scott cut the air with his hand. "Matthews is a jerk." He looked to the others for backup.

"I have to go with Scott on this one," Naruto mumbled, shouldering his backpack.

"No, he's not," Kitty protested, ignorant to Evan stealing her milk. "I'd go."

Naruto looked her way, chin still in his hands. "No freshman allowed."

"Oh, Matthews is a jerk," she pouted, crossing her arms and sinking into herself.

"Half of the school will be there. Suppose somebody gets too close to Kurt?" Scott proposed. "That holo-projector won't stop them from feeling his fur." Towards the end, Kurt turned an ire filled glare on him, annoyed that now he was making this about him. But the anger was quick to change.

"Hey! Chicks dig the fuzzy dude!" he countered jokingly. "Right?" he asked, leaning over to Kitty.

Kitty rolled her eyes at his immaturity. "I am, like, so out of here." Getting up, "Later!" she called over her shoulder in leaving.

Kurt grinned smugly. "Oh, yeah. She can't resist."

"I'm trying to be serious here. Look, we go to Matthews' party. Suppose Dukes or Maximoff try to start something?" motioning to the so named mutants across the quad. It was a good point to make, too. "We're not the only mutants in the school."

"Yeah, just the cool ones," Evan broke in, sharing a high-five with Kurt.

Jean wasn't finished trying to get Scott to relax a little. "Hey, come on, Scott. What's wrong with a little socializing?" The sunglasses wearing teen flustered for a second under her doe eyes.

But he recovered. "I'm sorry, but I just don't think it's a good idea."

By this point, Kurt could no longer stay silent. "Dude, it's just a party!" Jumping onto the tabletop, he started to dance. "Time to shake that tail! Whoohoo! Party! Party! Party!"

Unfortunately, his tail waved free in the process. Right in Scott's face. "Hey, watch the tail!" he urged, yanking the younger teen back down off the table. Ignoring his outraged ranting, he looked around, hoping and praying that no one had seen.

"No one noticed," Naruto whispered across the table. "Well, interesting as this sounds, I've got History in five minutes, and Latin afterwards." Groaning, he stood and backed up from the picnic table. "Lucky me." Waving over his shoulder, "See ya."

* * *

Three Minutes Later:

"I have got to work on my re-entries," the self proclaimed "fuzzy dude" groaned painfully, pulling himself from among the destroyed boxes. Wincing, he lifted himself off the box corner that was digging into his back. Blind porting was not Kurt's favorite hobby, but he had been so angry at Scott. Why did that guy have to be so…rigid. Seriously, he needed to loosen up, a lot! Coughing at all the dust he'd stirred up, his ear alerted him to his holo-projector, the watch-like device sparking on his wrist. The image inducer continued to spark, his image flickering between the projection and his real self several times before finally petering out. "Oh, weak, man."

"Who's there?"

Startled, he looked in the direction of the voice. He was in some kind of basement, the voice coming from a pair of twin doors, sunlight streaming through them and into the dark room. Fearful, considering he was exposed in his furry and uniformed glory, he looked around him. Opposite the way out, where the unknown voice was coming from, was another pair of doors that looked locked. Grime covered the slim windows, and a purple "Stay Out" sign with white lettering hung over the knobs. Perfect, considering his state of mind, he ported into the adjacent, and hopefully safe, room.

Again, he coughed at the dust in the air.

Whatever this place was, it could sure use a cleaning. Or, maybe a shovel considering how thick the dust under his feet was. "Man, somebody should fire the custodian." Despite the darkness, he could make out machines and computer monitors. Curious, he stepped further into the room to get a better look, not noticing the red beam his feet cut through as he did so.

Thus triggered, the screens came to life, halting him in his tracks.

On them was a teen with tan skin and dark hair in a light green shirt. "_January 22__nd__, 1978. Hi there. If you're hearing this message, you've got 10 seconds before this lab self-destructs. Have a nice day. What's left of it,_" grinning at his own final words before a countdown displayed on all the screens in big, red numbers.

"Uhoh."You didn't need to draw Kurt a map. He knew where this was going. Dashing forward, he tried to find something, anything, on the keyboards that might be helpful. "I knew I should have paid more attention in Computer Lab." No dice. He started pressing buttons at random.

3…

2…

Hearing a noise, and seeing a cloud of dust, Rogue had come to investigate. She was blown aside by an explosion from behind locked doors at the far end of the room. On the side of the explosive force, she was thrown off her feet, but the form that shot through after wasn't so lucky, colliding with the wall just next to the doors to the outside.

Coughing from the smoke, she rushed over. "Hey! Hey! Are you okay?" she asked, stopping herself from jiggling his shoulder. She almost forgot what would happen if she did. Even though she was wearing gloves, she still feared what could happen. "What happened?"

Groaning, Kurt's yellow-grey eyes cracked open. "Lab. Booby-trapped."

Rogue frowned. "Lab?" She looked back through the smoke exuding doors, but saw…nothing. Nothing but smoke. Walking over, she checked it out. There was nothing but smoke and wreckage. "Huh, well whatever this stuff was, it's thrashed now." But that wasn't entirely true. "Except for this." Towards the near corner of the room, fairly away from all the destroyed computer bits, an odd dome-shaped device set on a tall, multi-shelf tool box. It was one of those "one thing is not like the rest" kind of situations. Something about the…gizmo…attracted her attention. Picking it up, grasping the handle on either side, she measured it, trying to divine what it was.

"Gah, what are you doing here?" Kurt asked, entering the previously forcefully vacated room, massaging his skull.

"Look who's talking," she countered. "At least I didn't blow the place up."

Almost immediately, he noticed the "thingamajig" in her hands. His mind flashed back to a countdown and then an explosion. "Hey! Let go of that!" There was no way he'd be responsible for two explosions in the same day.

The pair grappled over the device in a desperate tug-of-war.

"Back off, blue boy!" she warned. "Who says you're in charge here?"

Kurt's attempt to wrest the machine from her grip failed spectacularly as she pulled herself free with the device in tow. A loud humming emanated from within the metal shell, and before either could react a red beam shot out and collided with Nightcrawler.

"Gaah!" he cried out before being swept away in a flash of power.

The bright light faded, leaving Rogue alone holding the now sinister seeming device.

Her breath catching in her throat, she hurled it away, sending it skidding across the cement floor. Staggering forward, she clawed at the air, still shimmering, where Kurt had once stood just seconds prior. "H-He's gone!"

* * *

"Gaah!" Rematerializing, Kurt found himself back in the hallway in school. "What happened? Where am I? The Twilight Zone?" Spectral images, shadows of the real things, flittered in and out of focus in this…shadow world.

Despite their incorporeal nature, he dodged out of their paths.

Then, a familiar set of ghostly people appeared walking along. "Man, Scott's gotta know when to lighten up," Evan whined.

Kitty shook her head. "Yeah, but Kurt's gotta, like, know when to quit."

Evan! Kitty!

"Kitty? Kitty!" He reached for her, but, as he'd seen already, his hand passed right through her. "No! Wait! No! What's happening to me?"

* * *

Rogue, utilizing a caution brought on by fear, held the device aloft by a mop handle, not even wanting to risk touching it again for the consequences a second touch could bring. Reaching the dumpster, she hastily dropped it in, grateful to be rid of it. It bounced off the side, landing on the ground.

She cringed, expecting to be vaporized just like the blue X-Man.

"Whoo, what's this?"

Looking back quickly, she noticed, one, that the device hadn't gone off, and, two, Toad was reaching for it. "Don't touch it!" she cried out, fearful.

Toad wasn't the sharpest, but her tone froze his hand in mid reach. "Why not?"

"It's…" Rogue began before falling back into her usual brusque clip. "Never you mind! Just leave it alone!" Not wanting to show just how freaked out she was, she reached for it.

Tolansky watched, befuddled. "What's the matter? Little Rogue get into some trouble?" turning mocking toward the end.

Rogue glared up at him from her kneeling position, taking up the device. "Trouble? No. There's just one less X-Man to push us around." And dropped the dome-shaped machine in the dumpster as she had previously intended.

But that wasn't the best thing to say. If anything, it only made Toad all the more interested. "Say what? You mean, you toasted one of them goody-goods with that thing? Wicked," he crooned, walking over to the dumpster to get a better look at it.

"Hey! Just leave it alone! You got it, swamp breath?" she snapped warningly before stomping off.

"Jeez, what is this, Abuse the Toad Day?" Tolansky hissed to himself. Rogue out of sight, he focused on the doohickey in the dumpster. Picking it up, he looked it over, shaking it, and generally doing everything with exception of beating it with a rock before, fumbling with a button, it reacted. "Whaa!" he cried out in surprise, dropping it. Humming, it sent out a red beam and made the dumpster vanish. Halfway up a tree, he looked, wide-eyed, at the now vacant spot. "Cool."

* * *

Not too long into Kurt's little trip, the remaining others started to pick up his trail. He'd been getting a dressing down from Jean over his need to bend a little when it all started to unfold. After ghostly appearances, and scant few other clues, Scott went for the first people on the list of those who had it out for them.

What perfect timing that Dukes and Alvers, key suspects, were headed their way down the hall.

"What are you looking at, Summers?" the latter of the pair growled.

"Where's Kurt?"

"Yeah, like we'd tell you!" Blob snorted, crossing his arms. Naruto, pack over his shoulder, came onto the scene to witness Scott pushing Lance roughly against the lockers.

"I said, where is her?"

"Get off of me!" Lance snapped back.

"What have you done with Kurt?"

Dukes grabbed Scott by the collar of his sweatshirt. "Get lost, slim!" lifting him off the floor.

"Put him down!" Jean warned.

This went bad to worse faster than he thought possible.

"Back off, red, or I'll rock you!" and at his beckoning, the hallway started to shake from his tremors.

The assorted students started to gather, chanting. "_Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!_"

"How 'bout you all back off," Naruto intoned, utilizing some non-specific ki. The last thing they needed was to expose themselves. Even he wasn't that stupid. The four teens hesitated at the pressure in the air. Most everyone felt a sudden aversion to being there, but only Scott and Jean had an inkling that the feeling was related to Naruto.

"_Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!_"

"What is going on here?" Darkholme's voice cut through the din like a bullwhip. Almost immediately, the crowd dispersed.

"We weren't doin' nothing," Dukes claimed, despite the fact that in one hand he had Scott held aloft, and the other was balled into a fist.

Lance was right behind him, figuratively speaking. "Yeah! Summers here just went ballistic on us for no reason!" waving at the optically restrained teen. Dukes dropped Scott.

"Oh, I've got a reason." Jean held him back by the arm.

"Scott-"

"Quiet!" Darkholme snapped. "You three in my office now." Barring the fact that Dukes and Alvers had been a part of the fight, she'd also seen fit to include Naruto and he had done nothing. Well, relatively nothing.

Lance sent them a "loser" sign in passing.

Rogue watched it all, unnoticed, from the sidelines.

* * *

After five minutes of mad porting he came to the conclusion that no amount of teleportation could get him out of wherever he was. "Okay. Wherever this is, I can't teleport out! This is just way too freaky!"

He had almost no warning before he had to dodge a falling desk. "Aah! It's raining furniture!"

* * *

In Darkholme's office, Toad, in uniform, was putting the gizmo through its paces, making the principal's furnishings vanish one by one. He cleared out though when he heard her…dulcet voice approaching. Satisfied with his victory, such as it was, he felt it was the perfect time to bale, hopping out the window.

"I don't care what influence Xavier has with the school board, I am going to get-" She entered the room, Scott, Naruto, and Jean in her wake. "What?" she gasped in outraged disbelief. "What happened here? Who took my furniture?" She went dashing out, the trio forgotten.

Hearing the unwanted sound of a chuckling Toad, they went to the open window, and bore witness to the amphibious mutant zapping away the principal's prized, new convertible into the ether.

Scott turned to Jean, Naruto catching some of the glance. "Bet I know what happened to Kurt."

* * *

Kurt slunk into the gym before porting upward, surprised by a shadow, an actual shadow, coming from behind him. Clinging to the wall just over the door, he looked down to see a teen coughing in his smoke. "Whoa! Where'd you come from?" Kurt flipped down, landing back on the wood floor, and, as it were, it was now his turn to surprise the newcomer.

"Relax."

"What are you, man?" the other teen asked, deciding whether or not to freak all the way out.

Kurt waved his arms up in surrender. "Don't let my looks fool you. I'm just a harmless blue fuzzball, really," he urged. Getting a better look at the other teen, recognition dawned on him. "Hey, I know you. You're the one I saw on the computer screen just before it blew."

The teen shrugged, seeming to calm now that they were in the territory of easily answered questions. "Yeah. The name's Forge. You found my lab, huh? What's with the Halloween getup?" he asked, scrutinizing.

Kurt, Nightcrawler, held his arms out. "No costume. I'm human. But I'm a mutant. I know I look strange, but-" he ported, reappearing right behind Forge. "There _are_ some fringe benefits."

Forge whirled around. "Trippy! I thought I was the only one." Raising his arm, it mutated into a metal appendage with small robotic arms of its own.

* * *

School out already, they had left a good ten or so minutes early to chase after Toad. "There he goes!" Scott in the lead, Naruto was at his side, finding it far easier to match pace than Evan, Kitty, and Jean. Each was in their institute uniform, even Naruto, for the second time outside of training. Each was tailored for the owner's specific skills and abilities.

For example, Evan's was reinforced in certain areas to handle his bony expulsions.

There weren't many others that needed such considerations.

Ororo, Storm, needed such to help with her ability to glide.

Wolverine's uniform was designed to take a beating, plain and simple, so the material was durable and the seams were reinforced.

His was like wolverine's uniform. Similar boots, though yellow pale yellow like the others. Deep blue, near black uniform. Pants and a tight shirt with sleeves that went down to just at his biceps. On his legs and obliques, a series of muted crimson slashes climbed. At his waist, a yellow belt, the X symbol located at his left hip. Hidden, unless someone knew to look, were a pair of black pouches, one on either leg. His addition had been a facemask. A red, cloth facemask that ended just below his eyes descended down and into his collar. He may not have liked Kakashi all that much towards the end, but he couldn't deny his sense of style. He'd thought about gloves, like the others, but decided against. There was no telling how long they'd last what with his excessive Rasengan usage.

Realistically, it wasn't all that big of a surprise when they finally caught him.

* * *

In the so dubbed "Middleverse," Forge explained how he ended up there. From the creation of the pocket dimension to his overextended stay. He was ready to leave. Through the whole talk, utilizing bits and pieces of things that had recently been sent into the dimension, he constructed his plan for their escape.

* * *

Tolansky was pinned to a tree, and the device was safely in Kitty's arms.

Scott knelt next to him, hand on his visor. "Now, tell us what you did to Kurt."

"I didn't do anything!" Toad sputtered in protest.

"He didn't." Eyes reoriented to Rogue standing just off the clearing by a bench. "I did." Putting her hands on her hips, "If you all ever want to find blue boy, you better let him go."

She brought them to the lab, such as it was.

"This is where it happened."

Scott knelt to pick up the broken image inducer before rounding on Rogue. "If you've hurt him, I'm gonna-"

"You start threatening me…and you're never gonna find your friend."

"She's lying." Eyes focused on Naruto. Blue eyes fixed on the goth. girl. "She doesn't know that for sure."

"Get out of my mind!" she spat.

Naruto scoffed. "I'm not a psychic," he countered. "But I can hear your pulse from here, and I've been watching your facial expressions." She looked downright furious. "This was an accident, I can see that much…and you feel guilty about it." Her fists balled.

"Yo, guys!" Kitty broke in. She and Evan had been looking over the device. "We've been running a diagnostic on this thing."

"Can you believe it? It uses CP/M!" Evan announced, hardly able to believe it. "I mean, talk about retro, man."

"It's putting out some kind of, like, steady low-power pulse wave…that just seems to disappear into thin air."

"And that means what exactly?" Scott asked. This was far and away from flying the blackbird, or programming a DVD player.

Evan answered this time. "We figure that the pulse has trapped the Crawler in some other dimension."

Unseen and unnoticed, Forge and Nightcrawler both cheered.

Scott stepped forward, hand on his visor. "Okay, so let's trash this thing."

Forge's eyes went wide and he made rapid arm movements, which were, again, unseen by the others. "No, no! They've got it all wrong!" He ran over to Kurt, grabbing him by the shoulders. "If they destroy the projector, we'll be trapped here forever!" Kurt's face reflected absolute horror

* * *

Scott placed the device on a surviving, but thoroughly trashed work table before backing away. "Okay, everyone stand back. I'm gonna use full power. This could get messy."

"You know, I could just, like, phase through the gizmo and, like, quietly short it out," Kitty proposed just as he was about to fire. Scott and Evan both just sent her blank stares. "Right. Forget I mentioned it." Giving in, she leaned over to Jean. "Like, what is it with guys and explosions anyway?"

Jean stifled a small laugh.

Kitty looked to Naruto, seeing as he hadn't said anything about blowing the thingus up. "Don't ask me my opinion, Kitty," answering the unspoken question. "You're looking at someone whose more memorable fights, on average, wrecked square miles."

Kitty's eyes bugged out.

Naruto laughed weakly. "I'll tell you guys some time."

* * *

In a flurried rush, they attached the device, bits and pieces strapped all over the fuzzy blue mutant.

Only, with only a pair of double-A's… "These batteries don't have much power. You're only gonna have enough juice for a second," he explained quickly. "I was rushed in-"

"Just tell me what to do!"

"Okay! Press that button, then teleport! Remember, you'll only have a second. Tell them _not_ destroy the machine, but to reset it."

"Right! I'm gone!" He pressed the button. "Bamf!"

* * *

Ready at last to wreck the machine, Scott's hand was on his visor when the air in front of them, on the opposite side of said device started to crackle statically.

Surrounded by an aura of yellowish, flaring energy, Kurt appeared before them, face contorted with uncharacteristic worry. He didn't waste a second. He only had the one. "Reset! Don't des-" and he was gone, as quickly as he'd come.

Scott froze. "Uh, you guys saw that, right?"

"He's still alive!" Rogue breathed, though the relieved comment was more for her than the others as they themselves had born witness, too.

"What was he saying?" Jean questioned, paying mind to what had to be important. Kitty shrugged, to shocked at the sight to remember what the fuzzy blue teen had said.

"He said, "Reset, don't." You know, don't reset it," Evan rationalized. "He wants you to blow it up! Do it!"

Kitty huffed, crossing her arms. "I swear these guys are, like, obsessed!"

Scott cupped his chin, pondering his own view of the momentary missive. "Uh…It sounded more like a warning to me."

* * *

"Do you think they'll get it?"

Kurt crossed his fingers. "I just hope they believe it."

* * *

Evan snorted, not believing it for a moment. "A warning? From the goof-man himself? No! Come on, shred that sucker!"

* * *

"Aagh!"

Forge looked appraisingly at Nightcrawler. "Man, you do have a rep."

* * *

Scott shook his head. "No. Nightcrawler's a joker, but even he knows when it's time to get serious."

* * *

"Yes!"

* * *

"Look, if he wanted to blow up the projector…why didn't he say, "Don't reset"? Instead of "reset" then "don't"."

"His English is better than that," Naruto added supportively.

* * *

"Oh, Cyc! You the man!" Kurt cheered, delivering a double thumbs-up.

* * *

"I think he wants us to reset this thing."

* * *

"Score!" Forge and Kurt chorused, high-fiving one another.

* * *

Picking it back up, Scott turned the device over, looking over the buttons. Fortunately, they were labeled. "Auh…Intensity settings, power regulation, beam width…restart!" He jabbed the button. Button glowing, the device started to hum. Dropping it back on the table, Scott backed away quickly, just in case.

A yellow beam cut the air, the energy discharge causing a slight wind in the room. Inside the field of energy, two figures came into focus. One was unknown, but the other was Kurt!

"Come on!" Scott shouted to them. "Teleport through!"

Kurt grinned. "Hang on! Let's go!"

"We can't," Forge quickly negated. "The batteries tapped out," pointing to the drained cells. "We need more juice to get us home."

Kurt noticed something though. "Look!" The portal was closing!

"The portal won't last much longer. It's now or never!"

"What's the matter?" Scott called to them. "Let's go!"

Kurt tried to think of something. Anything. "Another power source?" Then an idea hit him. "I know! Come on!" Grabbing Forge, the pair teleported away into the Middleverse.

"What are they doing?" Evan cried out, seeing them disappear…and not reappear.

Scott shook his head, his jaw tight. "I don't know. But I hope they hustle!"

"There they are!" Heads turned as Mystique's chosen entered the basement. "And they still got that vape-ray I was telling you about," Toad added. On either side were Alvers and Dukes, or, given their uniforms, Avalanche and Blob, respectively.

Avalanche sent a look at Rogue. "Rogue, Mystique sent us to find you. So you with us or them?"

"Mystique?" Scott asked, not believing, turning to Rogue amidst them. "You working for her?"

Not liking his tone, she rounded on him in turn. "Hey, Summers, you got your friends, I got mine," poking him in the chest before walking away from them. Towards Mystique's minions…and past. "But this ain't my fight. I'm out of here." Once out the door, hostilities continued.

"Okay. Fork it over, losers," Blob sneered, holding out his am-sized meat hook, Lance delivering the other end of the ultimatum.

"Or this place is gonna rock," and stomped down on the concrete. The cement beneath them shuddered, trembling momentarily as a warning.

"The projector stays with us," Scott declared, the others gathering around him. "X-Men, keep that portal open!"

"Your call!" Slamming his boot into the floor, face straining, Avalanche sent a tremor through the ground at them, his mutant partners following in its wake.

* * *

"Bamf!"

Kurt and Forge appeared in the school hallways. "Groovy ride!" the retro teen crowed. "But where's this power source?"

Kurt turned and pointed to the wrecked convertible in the middle of the hall. "Check it!"

Forge grinned. Arm changing, he raced over to the vehicle. "Far out, man!"

Left standing alone while the other worked, Kurt shook his head in frustration. "I swear, that homey's lingo is so wack!"

* * *

It was, unofficially, Cyclops and Jean versus Blob, Spike versus Toad, and that left Kitty and Naruto to fend off Avalanche. In truth, Naruto could have taken them all, easily. There was just the issue of collateral damage.

* * *

"Come on! Hit me with your best shot, Slim!" Blob egged, and got an optic beam to the gut for it. Not that id did all that much. It only made him stumble backward a bit. Rising from one knee, he smirked. "Takes more than that to stop the Blob!"

"Thanks for the tip. Jean!" Scott signaled. He blasted as much of a circle around the teen as he could. Taking it from there, she telekinetically ripped the hunk from beneath Blob, leaving him to fall backward, crashing, into the hole.

* * *

"You and me got a date, pretty Kitty," Avalanche ranted, advancing on her. "How about a ride on the concrete coaster?" and sent a shockwave powerful enough to make the floor take on wave like undulations heading for her. "Whoao!" she cried out, before being thrown against the wall. Phasing, she passed right through it. A second later, she shot back out, rolling to her feet.

"Lousy ride, loser!" she snapped.

"You've got to learn how to treat a lady," Naruto lectured, kicking his feet out from under him. Jumping back to his feet in a blur, he grabbed the airborne teen by the chest of his uniform and slammed him into the ground.

Avalanche groaned at his aching back.

In truth, Naruto had gone exceptionally easy on him.

* * *

Toad bounced cockily around Spike. "Come on! Come on! What you got?" he teased. "You ain't got nothing! That's right! You ain't got nothing!" Evan lunged for him but missed, Toad going for the projector. Spikes jutting from his arm, he lashed out and let them fly.

"Heheheh-OOF!" A series of long spikes bringing Toad to a halt as he slammed face-first into them.

"You call that nothing, you slimy SuperBall?" Spike ragged in return.

* * *

The engine struggled, but at least it was running. Kurt was behind the wheel, Forge at his side just finishing splicing a few wires. "You're sure this will work?"

"No," Forge admitted.

Kurt groaned, but it wasn't like they had any better options. "Wunderbar. Let's hit it!" He gunned the car down the hall, and fifty feet into its trip it disappeared in a cloud of sulfurous smoke.

* * *

Toad, Avalanche, and Blob had regrouped, though Avalanche looked a little worse for wear. "Okay, enough of the warm-ups," Blob snarked. "Time for some serious smashing!"

"HONK! HONK!"

Heads shot around to the now miniscule ball of light that was the diminished portal. "Look out!" Scott warned, and they all, the X-Men that is, dived away from it to the sides.

None too soon either as a ruined seafoam green convertible burst through. "Yahoo!" Kurt and Forge roared over the engine and screeching brakes. Toad and Avalanche hurled themselves behind Blob, the heavyset teen bracing himself. The front of the car crumpled upon meeting his hamhands, but both occupants were protected by massive inflated cushions.

"Whoa. Good thing I'm the Blob," Dukes admitted, relieved, getting hearty agreements from those hiding behind him.

"Yeah, you can say that again."

Unfortunately, said car happened to crash land right on the projector. It smoked and fizzled before going completely inert, the smoking continuing. Avalanche groaned. "Come on, guys. This party's over." All this for nothing? And his back ached like nothing else. Trying not to look like they'd lost anything, the disappointed trio marched out, all the fun gone from the fight.

"What the heck are these?" Forge questioned, experimentally pressing on the inflated cushion that had saved his face from flattening against the dashboard.

"Re-entry cushions. Cool, eh?" supplied a grinning Kurt, pounding on one for effect.

* * *

Uniforms doffed and back in their civilian attire, they exited the now positively wrecked basement. From afar, Rogue watched them leave. She was…relieved?

"You're welcome to crash with us for a while, Forge," Scott offered. "Xavier's cool. You'd like him." They all gathered between Scott's and Naruto's cars.

Forge looked interested, but shook his head. "Thanks, but I better go find my parents," he excused. "I'm twenty years late for curfew." He turned to Kurt. "Thanks for bailing me out."

"Hey, anytime," slapping palms.

"Need a lift?" Naruto offered, opening the driver side door of his car. Evan apparently wanted to be his wingman, dashing around to get into the passenger's seat.

"Shotgun!"

Forge chuckled. "No problem. It's just a few blocks," he explained, motioning over his shoulder, and started walking off.

"Okay," Scott gave in, but pulled a pad of paper from his pocket, and took a second to write a string of numbers down. "But if you need any help, just call."

* * *

Forge gone, everyone was distributed between the two vehicles. As was most often, Jean rode with Scott, and Kurt and Kitty were in the back.

Adjusting his mirror, Scott stopped on Kurt's reflection. "Uh, you're gonna have to duck until we can get you a new holo-watch."

Kurt gasped in feigned shock. "So it's true! You _are_ ashamed of me!"

"Heheh, right, dude." Scott actually chuckled before turning apologetic. "Hey, listen. About what happened before. My bad." Jean and Kitty stared.

Kurt shook his head wearily. "No. It was on me too."

"Maybe…Maybe you're right," he admitted. "I take things too seriously. I need to lighten up some." Despite his inner nature, Naruto kept his mouth shut.

"Oh, Scott, not you," Jean ribbed.

Kitty snickered. "Check his temperature. Mr. Military's going soft!" reaching up to feel his forehead. He waved her off.

"And I could probably dial down the goofing a little," Kurt sighed.

"Ah, welcome back." Twisting in the driver seat, he and Kurt knocked knuckles. Really, everything was going to be all right. Hands back on the wheel, "Okay. So now what do you say we head home, gear up…and run a level-three training sim in the Danger Room?" he offered. Everyone groaned and started grumbling.

"Give us a break." - Jean

"Oh, man!" Kurt moaned in exasperation. "See?" motioning at Scott. "That's what I'm talking about. Always serious."

"Psyche!"

Naruto shook his head, groaning at the weak joke. Although it was a step up for Scott. Most everyone else shared a laugh at the unexpected jocularity.

Kitty giggled. "You got us."

Kurt gave Scott a mock congratulatory pat on the shoulder. "Very nice. There's hope for you yet."

"Yeah, well, tell me about it on the way to Duncan Matthews' party," Scott offered.

Kitty pouted. "Oh, I can't go, remember? I'm, like, a freshman." Scott lay a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"Hey. You're also one of the X-Men."

Jean nodded in agreement. "Don't worry. We'll make it happen."

"So, no training?" Naruto asked innocently. Well, mostly innocent.

"Shut up!" Kitty hissed at him.

"Let's roll!" the sole blue X-Man declared.

Two engines roared to life and, one after the other, the cars rolled out of the star-lit parking lot.

* * *

Omake (What exactly does that mean anyway?):

That night, just after the party, "Hey, Kurt, can you help me with something?" Naruto's eyes gleamed.

* * *

The following morning, Raven Darkholme's indignant scream echoed loudly through the entire mostly empty school. Her office, still devoid of the vanished furniture, was not as empty as she'd left it. Glaring her right in the face, its current state galling her, was her new convertible, wrecked, and parked in her office.

Just entering the grounds himself, Naruto caught the tail end of the scream, and was just able to make out her muffled swearing.

"What was that?" Evan asked, looking around.

"Ah…it's the simple things in life you treasure," the blonde sighed, pulling into a vacant parking spot. Sharing a knowing grin with Kurt, they bumped knuckles. The fuzzy man himself wasn't too far from falling out in laughter.

It felt good, cutting loose again, even if only once in a while.

* * *

Of course, they didn't get away clean.

The professor grounded them both for a week, before quietly congratulating them on a classic school prank after their dismissal.

AN? Sorry. I could've sworn I'd posted this. I'll put up 4 next week.


	4. Left Hanging In The Wind

X Evo: Naruto's New Journey

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or X-Men.

Speaking Normally

_Thoughts (Personal or Psychic)_

**Demonic/Empowered Voice**

AN/ Wow. Again, I'm really socked to have forgotten to post the previous chapter until just last week. Weird. Also, it's a real pain, but, as of late, I've found out why people keep whining about no partitioning of sections. No offense. I've finally noticed that even though the document has horizontal lines or hiphens, they disappear when uploaded onto . Again, weird. But I'm working on that.

* * *

Chapter 4 (Based on Turn of the Rogue)

The first guard fell, courtesy of Kitty and a can of sleeping aerosol. After her initial surprise, she fell limply to the ground. "North perimeter secure."

* * *

The guard's shadow stretched and twisted as he walked up to and past the street lamp outside the warehouse.

Evan smirked down at the guard. Suspended above him, latched onto the side of the building, his bone spikes dug into the wall form his arms and legs to hold him in place, defying gravity.

Naruto'd once mentioned to him how few people actually expect an attack from above.

The guard passed.

Spikes retracted, and he fell, almost silently, to the cement below. Continuing, he crept behind the guard. The guard must have heard something, because the moment he got close, the man turned around, but still caught a face full of the knockout spray. "This guy's catching Z's," he whispered into his radio before remembering himself. "I mean, South perimeter secure."

"_Okay. Let's make it a clean rescue,_" Scott returned over the comm.

* * *

Inside the warehouse, storage for a scant few crates and bits of timber, all covered with a thick patina of dust, darkness was only interrupted by a series of laser beams near the floor. They formed into an illusory cage around a shrouded figure chained to a heavy wooden column.

"Bamf!"

Cyclops, Nightcrawler on his back, fell from the ceiling in accordance with gravity's will. "Jeeeeaaann!"

"_Gah!_" crackled over their comms as they slowed and halted in air, held aloft. Craning his neck, Scott could see the faint image of Jean, struggling in her concentration, through the dirty skylight. "_Sorry. You guys are heavy_." Slowly, she brought them lower.

"Storm? Storm?" Scott called down to the splayed figure in a hushed voice. "She's out." Jean brought the pair to a halt. Taking careful aim, Scott depressed the release on his visor.

The first shot missed, hitting to the right of the chain.

The second was just as much off, but to the left.

"Nice aim," Nightcrawler ragged over his shoulder.

The third shot struck true, the chain losing a few links in the blast.

Cyclops and Kurt shared an exultant high-five. "Yeah!"

"_Which one of you guys has been putting on weight?_" Jean interrupted over the radio, her fatigue audible.

* * *

"I can hardly hold you," she ground out.

They'd debated the teams. In the end, Scott needed to go. His optic blast could make it past the laser grid to free the prisoner. As for his partner, well… Kurt was the only one capable of getting in, with his teleporting. It irked Naruto that he couldn't do more. If the glass wasn't wired, they could open the window and he could climb the walls and carry Scott into range.

Resigned to his role, Naruto stood guard over the telekinetic. In addition, a clone was posted at each corner of the building's roof to maintain a good lookout.

He wanted to say something that might ease her current burden, but he somehow doubted that his speaking would help her concentration any.

"_It's Nightcrawler,_" Cyclops retorted. "_Burgers seven days a week will do that to a fella._"

"_The breakfast of mutants._"

"Hey!" How in Hell did that guard get up here without being spotted? Naruto shot at the guard who'd poked his head over the lip of the roof. Damnit, he knew he should have posted sentries on the knocked out guards.

But the interruption was enough.

Jean's focus slipped, and Cyclops and NIghtcrawler dropped.

* * *

Fortunately, they were close enough to the ground that they weren't too hurt, but they did trigger the laser grid. The red beams flickered and faded, signaling that they'd been detected and the alarm had been tripped. Jumping to their feet, painful bruises forgotten, Cyclops and Nightcrawler rushed to their downed comrade.

They needed to get out, now!

"Let's grab her and 'port outta here!"

His hand was just over her shoulder when… "Gotcha!" If the pale hand that shot from the cloth shroud, ensnaring Cyclops' arm, was surprising, then the recognized owner of said limb was more so. A familiar pale skinned young girl, brown-haired with a flash of white, leered from under her ragged cloak, using Cyclops' momentary surprise to reach up, touching his face.

Taking his power.

Her dark eyes glowed red.

Cyclops struggled, trying to break loose, but her grip was strong, unrelenting. Smiling, almost maliciously, she averted her gaze just enough to send an energy beam at Nightcrawler. The 'porter was blindsided in their close proximity, and was thrown back, crying out in pain. "Gaah!"

Cyclops was shaken, but he still retained enough of his faculties to call attention to this…wrongness. Visored eyes went up, looking seemingly at empty air. "Uh, hold it! Hold the simulation!"

The warehouse disappeared, replaced by the paneled metal walls of the Danger Room. But Rogue remained. The goth girl slumped to the floor, inanimate. Again, an imitation.

It was a projection, all of it. An aberration to reality.

The sole pair of doors parted. "Scott, you're never to stop a simulation unless you're hurt!" the Professor chastised from the other side, the rest of the team, and the "guards" behind him.

Kurt groaned, clutching his aching chest. "Trust me, that hurt."

But Scott wasn't deterred by either of the responses. "Why's Rogue in this mockup? She was _not_ a part of the briefing." His agitation at the surprise was plain as day. And it would be. Scott was the type of person to hope for the best of people. He had yet to regard the, er, rogue mutant as an enemy. She was just confused.

"Simply the element of surprise," Xavier explained, albeit sounding somewhat exasperated. "It's part of life. So expect it on every exercise." Scott just didn't want to accept that answer. "Well, we're finished. Better get to school."

Giving the robotic dummy another glance, Scott grimaced, fists clenching. "Come on, Jean. We gotta help Rudetsky load for the field trip." Jean's brow furrowed in mild worry at the tightness in his voice.

* * *

Students either milled around. Most were simply walking to their classes, but the gathered few around the school bus were either pulling together their packs, or listening to their professor, a balding, bearded man. "All right. Double-check your spelunking gear," Professor Rudetsky, teacher of Geology, advised his students. "Make sure your packs contain a hardhat, spiked boots, rope, compass, rations…lamps, candles and matches." He looked up from his clipboard. "Remember, there are no sporting-good stores in the Tapo Caves."

The bus was loaded down with gear laden packs, and towing a trailer bearing a half-a-dozen snowmobiles. And it would be fair to say they got more attention than the teacher, with exception to the more serious students.

* * *

Shouldering his bag, he gave one last look to the Geology students before back-stepping. Turning fluidly on his heel, he walked away. It wouldn't do to be late for class…even if he could think of better ways to amuse himself.

* * *

Making their way for the bus, Scott and Jean were bound for the Geology Clubs' throng. Each bore a simple backpack and were dressed warmly for the present clime but perfectly for the cooler areas to which they would be headed. Jean was doing her best to try and get Scott to ease up, memory of the simulation, and Rogue's involvement therein, setting him on edge.

"So he threw you off your game by sticking Rogue in a simulation. What's the big deal?" But Scott was having one of his stubborn moments.

"Me fouling up isn't the problem," he replied curtly.

"What, then? Because he chose Rogue?"

"Yeah, I guess." Stopping in his tracks, he turned to the slightly shorter redhead. "How can we pretend she's the enemy in simulation while we're trying to convince her to be our friend?" A quandary. It also reminded Jean of Scott's steadfast need to hope for the best in others. To him, including her in the simulation was as good as saying they'd given up on her, in one form or another. Declaring her the enemy. "If we can't think of her as a friend, she'll never want to join us."

Understanding at last, Jean's hand went to his shoulder in a gesture of comfort. Scott just wasn't the type to give up on someone until the very end. "Hey, it was only a simulation, Scott," pulling him back along the sidewalk. "Nobody wants you to stop trying with Rogue."

A pity they lacked Naruto's senses. Walking onward to the bus, they missed the often surly Principal Raven Darkholme step out of the shadows of a building doorway, smirking.

* * *

The Health class' room, basic exercise machines lining the walls, was devoid of presence, with exception to a pale teen. Striding forward on the mat, she rhythmically punched the air in front of her with each step, before ending with a high, whirling kick at head level. A few more steps, puffing, and she let off a swift straight kick, launching straight into a flying whirlwind kick…unfortunately, she didn't stick the landing, falling unceremoniously on her butt.

Groaning at her misstep, breathing a little ragged, her attention shifted to the windows at the sounds of voices. Through the slanted blades of the lowered blinds, she made out students stowing their gear and running over the trailer behind the bus, rechecking all the straps.

More to the point, her attention was drawn by the familiar voice of Scott Summers. Not that she really cared all that much what the redhead next to him was saying.

It had only been a momentary pause. Hand going up, grasping the cord, she closed the blinds all the way.

But…hand reaching back up, she pried the blades apart for another look.

Conflict. That's what she felt, seeing the pair interact the way they were.

Catching something in her periphery, her mind immediately recognized the person silently standing beside her. "Principal Darkholme!" jumping, embarrassed as if caught in some awkward position.

Arms crossed over her chest, the usually overbearing woman wore only an expression of mild woe. "He's never going to be your friend. You know that."

Rogue internally recoiled at being called out so plainly. "Who? Scott? I ain't interested in him," but she ducked away, unable to meet the older woman's gaze.

"Really?" A hint of a smile playing across Darkholme's lips. Time to remind her doubting underling of "The Facts". Rogue started working on the punching bag, but she pressed her advantage. "Tell me, dear, have you forgotten how Mr. Summers and his friends attacked you?"

Rogue hesitated, ceasing her punches. "No. It's just that-"

Darkholme sidled up behind her. "Just this morning, I overheard them discussing their simulated battle exercises, with you as their target." She was the paradigm of supportive mentor.

Her head jerked a little in overt show of distress. "But why? Why would they do that?" turning to glare at the instigative woman behind her, anger burning in her eyes.

"I think it's time that you be reminded just who your friends really are." Walking to the door, she picked up an earlier unnoticed pack, bringing it over and dropping it just in front of the conflicted young lady. "Enjoy the field trip, dear," she explained, hinting quite obviously at what she wanted her to do. Turning and walking away, "It should be most enlightening," she offered in finality over her shoulder.

Thus leaving Rogue to feel so very lost with herself.

* * *

Timeskip, 2 Hours (Give or Take)

English, potentially useful as it was, regardless of how much it had helped him…was boring him to tears. Figuratively speaking. Ah, another take away from the class. Either way, he couldn't understand the reasoning behind exposure to early English poetry. In the official English class vernacular, the rhyming sucked and the prose were getting older by the second.

Then again, maybe it was just his mindset.

Seeing the students packing for their outing…he felt the urge to do something similar. Oh, the woes of possessing his attention span.

Besides…he'd already had his clones do a once over through all his textbooks.

"_Naruto._" His chin slipped from where it was propped on his palm, and for a second he flailed trying to right himself.

Schooling his expression, "_Professor?_" He was fairly used to the telepath's occasional broadcast, but he hadn't been expecting it now.

"_Something urgent has come up. I need for you to…skip…class today._" There was a certain reluctance in the suggestion. For such a learned man, it was against his nature to casually ask a student to break away from their education. Which is what worried the blonde.

A grin sneaking its way onto his face, "_Give me a moment, Professor, and I'll be on my way._" Raising his hand, he caught the teacher's eye. Making a quick motion for the door, the teacher gave him an excusing gesture, guessing that he was more than likely heading for the bathroom.

Leaving his things behind, he sidled out of the classroom. And he did indeed head right for the bathroom. As was the fortunate case, he was alone, the stalls empty. Foot against the door, just in case, he pulled off a quick clone. The duplicate stood there dumbly before shrugging nonchalantly.

"You know the drill," the original reminded. Anything he knew so too did the clones, provided they were created after the knowledge was attained. Meaning the clone knew immediately that it was boned, stuck with three periods left in the school day. Normally, he was averse to the use on school property. Clones were tricky. They were him in every way, with exception to their instability. One good hit and "poof." He'd learned to reinforce them, as he'd done with this one. After all, why create an army of one hit wonders when you can create a few just as awesome as the master copy.

But there was always the off chance that something might happen.

Time to face facts, irony was not his friend.

His own image shimmered before taking on the most nondescript look he could. Baggy cargos, a grey tee, and orange hair, kind of close to how he pictured Nagato would've looked at that age, minus the eye-catching Rinnegan of course. As one, the pair exited the restroom, one headed to a mind-numbing lecture.

* * *

It wasn't like slipping off was terribly difficult. It was more of an honor code kind of deal. Hence the reason why students like Tolansky and Alvers managed to leave class in the middle of the day. Not that having the principal on their side didn't hurt.

In this moment in time though, all he had to do was get out of anyone's sight and dash off. He didn't take his car, the reasons being two-fold. First, it sold the illusion that he was still here, and, second, he could get to the mansion faster by foot. He was no Quicksilver, but he was modestly proud of his speed.

* * *

Coming in, he'd immediately been called down to the sublevels. As such, he'd gone with his instincts and dressed for the occasion. "What's the problem, Professor?" Naruto asked, having followed the psychic's telepathic urgings all the way to the blackbird hangar. Present along with the telepath were Ororo and Logan, both in their respective wear.

"You're already in uniform, good," Xavier replied, wheelchair already ascending the ramp. "Get aboard quickly. We'll brief you on the way."

* * *

"Told you," Naruto offered in simplicity after hearing the rundown, and what they all believed it meant. Really, this was what the blonde had been worried about. He'd had the importance of information beaten into him by a spymaster.

Doing his level best not to chastise the youth, not that he had the right as the boy was correct, Xavier let the comment slide. Naruto was unique in his outlook, and he had been remiss in not heeding his words sooner.

Something he had been reminded just hours prior.

Flashback

He'd been in his library, teasing through a delightful, if old, novel. Wind whipping through the curtains drew him away, noting the storm that had descended upon the area. Not one of Ororo's making.

Backing away, he reoriented and made for the windows. Crossing the room, he came to a stop in front of the tall twin door-style windows. Hardly did his hands touch the frames of either when he felt his very chair shudder beneath him, and then jerk backward. He tried to stop it manually, clutching at the wheels, but that did little good. In seconds, he was thrown chair and all against a chest of drawers, roughly enough that knickknacks adorning it were shaken off, falling to the floor.

He knew exactly what was happing, just not the why. Steadying himself against the chest, anchoring himself to it the best he was able, he looked back to the window. "Magneto, why are you here?"

"I've come to pay you a compliment," echoed through the room, though there was no one there, nor outside the window, only wind shaken branches. "Your young charges, they seem to be flourishing under your tutelage."

Xavier fiddled with the controls of his chair nervously. "Yes. They're doing quite well," he admitted.

"I'm referring to the development of their mutant powers," the voice corrected.

Charles stiffened, gaze hardening, as he railed in protective defense of his students. "I'm very proud of them."

"_Proud_. Yet you don't trust them."

"But I do trust them, with my life," Xavier declared.

A caped silhouette darkened the window. "But _not_ with the truth!" Whereupon he was dragged swiftly back to the open window. The panes closed just before he would've sailed right out. They stopped him, but paid the price, shattering under the duress. And when he looked again, the red and purple clad figure was gone, leaving him with ominous dread.

Flashback End

And when Jean had returned to the mansion, he knew right then that things had finally boiled over.

Storm took over once the storytelling was over and done. Strapped in as she was, her chair swung around so she could face him. "You're here, Naruto, to assist me." The blonde's head cocked to the side in mild bafflement. Ororo held back the urge to openly recognize how cute he looked with that expression. Hand going to the console mounted in the side of the interior, she pulled up a meteorological map. "These are the mountains where the Geology Club headed to this morning." It looked like a swirling mess. "I don't have the raw power to subvert an entire weather system of this magnitude in such a short time, so we'll be working in conjunction to clear a path for the blackbird."

"Huh," he answered intelligently.

Logan smirked out of view. "We're all gonna die," he mocked.

But Naruto was ready for that at least. "Haven't you heard, Logan? Awesome is immortal…like a roach."

* * *

A Half-Hour Into The Trip

The bus moseying on down the road, fresh snowflakes descended upon it, soon to join the previous flakes heavily coating the wilderness lining the asphalt. As was the case with most any field trip, the travel time was spent filled with idle conversations, gossip and general joking around.

Paying little mind to the jubilant atmosphere behind him as he drove, the Geology professor sent a critical eye to the sky. "Wonderful. It's starting to snow," Rudetsky murmured, frowning at the falling white stars of ice. Almost immediately, he knew what to expect.

"Yeah! Fresh powder!" one student declared gleefully.

"This isn't a snowmobile trip, people," he reminded. "Too much of the white stuff means we turn around." Which got the equally expected groans of disappointment.

Seated near the back of the bus in unbroken silence, Rogue continued to drill her stare into the back of Summers' head.

Within twenty minutes, their chances of continuing were growing bleak. The snow was falling heavily enough that it had overtaken the road entirely, but the bus plowed on.

Turning along the mountainside, Rudetsky felt the bus tires give. Panic filled his veins like the very ice the tires had just passed over. "Hang on!" he barked over the sudden cries of distress. The bus started a downhill skid, him fighting for control of every inch. The bus slid from side to side, the cart flailing like a bull's tail.

Exposure be damned, Scott jimmied the window down. The others were too busy being scared to look away from the front of the bus, let alone pay him any mind. Slipping up his shades, a crimson beam sliced through the snow in a lengthening trench of exposed dirt along the road's edge. Only seconds ahead of catching the bus before it could slide over the edge. The great metal leviathan pitched, its cargo screaming fearfully, but gravity won over on its inertia, pulling the raised left side back to the turf.

Scott covertly pushed the window back into place. So far, success. Eyes casting around the bus, apparently no one had seen his little light show.

Almost.

His search ended on the one person that he felt the most confusion for. She'd seen, he knew from her face. But…Rogue wore a small smile.

"Everybody ok?" Rudetsky queried, standing up from the driver's seat, enough so that he could turn around to look them over.

One student groaned. "Oh now what?"

"We head back," the teacher answered.

There were multiple indignant cries of "What?" and incessant grumblings. But the bus proved to be as much against him as the students when, turning the key, all he received were the tortured cries of an engine failing to turn over. Sighing to himself, "Okay. Okay, who wants to get out and push?" looking over his shoulder at the many able bodied teens.

"Mr. Rudetsky, why not take our snowmobiles to the cave and wait out the weather there?" Rogue proposed, stepping forward. Her first words the whole trip, and they were taken in with happy support by the other students. It was quite the change being the center of so much positive attention.

Exhaling deeply in defeat, "Sounds good to me. Let's do it," face falling into his hands. Oh well. Maybe there was a chance to get _some_ education into this trip, provided they made it to the caves.

* * *

Eventually, everyone made it to the cave, though the trip was decidedly different for some. In a twist, Rogue had come up and challenged Scott in a casual snowmobile race.

Casual, right.

She'd turned it serious in almost no time at all. And Scott was left utterly taken aback by her aggressive, almost angry, driving, as was his passenger.

As if to throw him off even further, she greeted them at the cave mouth with an almost snide congratulations for being last. And in a blink, she went from rubbing her victory in his face, to flirting with him.

Talk about confusing.

* * *

"We need to go _faster_." Eyes firmly on the flurry being diverted just shy of the blackbird's nose, "Come on. Give it some more juice," he griped tersely.

"I'm a weather-witch, not a snow plow," Storm retorted, snapping back at his ill mood, her eyes a bright, snowy white. The fact that the jet was handling as well as it was in the mess outside was a miracle, and it was still jerking a little. All her focus on deflecting the torrential winds, an ambient breeze surrounded her making the breeze catching bits of her uniform billow. Sitting at her feet was Naruto in an almost meditative pose, fists together, legs crossed, eyes closed and face beaded with perspiration from concentration.

"Don't mind me," he ground out sarcastically. "I'm fine."

"Concentrate, Naruto," she chided, sensing the small slip in his control during his repartee. Though, she would admit that he was doing quite well for someone who had such little experience using wind to this extent. And it was with his assistance, that little boost to her efforts, that they were even making such good time in the first place.

"I got it. I got it," he groaned, focusing once more on reinforcing the climate controlled bubble she was creating.

"Pick up the slack, kid."

Making sure _not_ to let his control slip, "Are we there yet?" he griped, mentally making a note to get back at Logan for his whining.

* * *

Standing between his small gathering of students and the mouth of the cave, the snow storm raging behind him, Rudetsky faced his students. "Okay, we're stuck here. Might as well make the best of it." Perhaps something good could be pulled from this mess. "So, in review, metamorphic rock," hand raised to gesture at the walls around them in the open cavern. "Question: What has altered it from its original state? Answer: Heat, pressure, or chemical change? It was one thing, now it's another. A mutation."

While he lectured, someone slipped away for some private exploring of their own.

Motioning for them to follow, Rudetsky began a guided walkthrough. "Okay, over here. Somebody point out other examples of igneous rock formations." But Scott, catching a glint of light flickering from within an offshoot of the main cavern, a tunnel, went to investigate. If someone was out on their own, it'd be best to pull them back to the group before they got lost, or in trouble. It was dim, but he was able to make out a familiar profile against the light.

"How about that, Mr. Rudetsky?" a student asked, her voice echoing through the cave as the distance between him and the group grew larger.

"Exactly," he congratulated. "Rock formed from very hot molten material. It's deformation usually a result from stress. Ah, well, this one…" Words grew fainter the greater the distance.

Making up his mind, Scott started walking, but not after the group. Boots crunching on the mix of rock and earthen floor, he followed the perpetual loner.

After a few meters, the tunnel, rough as it was, broke off into another chamber. But unlike the cavern at the entrance, this one was backed by a waterfall draining into a large pool, the air around it steaming from the temperature difference. "Wow," he murmured in awe, momentarily forgetting why he'd even stepped away from the group. It really was beauty- "Ugh!" Enthralled as he had been, he'd started walking to the watery wonder, and almost fell into the chasm separating him from it. Okay, now things were getting dangerous. Arms flailing as he tried to shift his center of gravity, he stumbled back from the edge, and watched as stones disturbed from the edge fell silently into the dark abyss. Jeez, he couldn't even see the bottom of that thing. And it was certainly taking long enough for those rocks to hit, too.

Sighing in relief, he remembered his purpose. "Rogue?" he called, wondering if she might've fallen. Panning his flashlight around, he found her standing just behind him.

"I need to know, Scott. What is it you want from me?" A question that had been eating at her for some time.

"I…I don't want anything, well, except maybe your friendship." And that was the truth. It was why he'd had such an issue with the morning's sim. How could they extend the olive branch when planning for her as an enemy?

"Know what I want? The truth," she asked and declared in one breath, stepping right up to him aggressively. "Am I a target for you and your little X-freaks?"

"We, uh-"

The shaky response left her crestfallen. "It's true, isn't it?" her voicing cracking. "I know all about your battle simulation. The one where _I'm_ the enemy," jabbing her thumb at herself for emphasis. Shoulders sagging a little, she turned and walked away. She wasn't sure if she wanted to hear what he had to say to that. Hoping for an answer to dissuade her anger, and fearing for what his answer could entail.

Shaken from being caught so off-guard, "No! No, wait!" he called after her. "Rogue, it-it's complicated. We're not who you think we are. We've never tried to hurt you. You've been lied to. We want you with us."

Stopping to look back at him over her shoulder, "Yeah? Well, sorry. Not interested," and kept walking. And almost right into another Geology club student.

Standing just at the mouth of the cavern, Paul seemed relieved to have found them. "Hey, everything alright? Rudetsky's lookin' for ya."

But Rogue just scowled. "_Paul_, here, is your friend," she excused, brushing past the teen. "But I bet you never practice fighting him."

"I'm afraid you'd lose that bet, Rogue." Paul's voice shifting through the statement from that of a young man to a dusky feminine, along with his appearance. The blonde youth transformed into an arch-looking brunette in a skirt-suit. Someone quite familiar, in fact. And she kept gaining ground on the shell-shocked teen as he backpedaled. "Hello, Scott. Are you more surprised to see me?" Principal Darkholme questioned coyly before her body changed again. This time to that of a woman with skin of deep blue, and red hair, in a white gown, of sorts. "Or me?" Laughing smugly at the slow recognition on his face.

Retreat halted, "Principal Dar- You're Mystique?" he managed.

"Something Professor Xavier neglected to tell you?" she tsked. "Nice of him, wasn't it? You have no idea what he's been hiding from you. Let _me_ fill you in. You X-Men are nothing but puppets for Charles Xavier." Her further encroachment rewarded him with the knowledge that there was no ground left to retreat to. He once more stood on the edge of the precipice. Getting right up into his face, "And I am a sharp blade cutting your strings…just so I can watch you FALL!" giving him a hard shove on that last, monosyllabic word. The flashlight flew up from his hand as he toppled backward.

"Nooo!" Horrified, Rogue rushed past Mystique, falling down at the edge to look down into the chasm. "Scott!" Glaring back at the blue-sinned woman, "Why did you do that?" she asked, tears of anguish already brimming.

"I'm protecting you, dear. From his lies," Mystique answered matter-of-factly, crossing her arms, more likely for image than for warmth. "He only wants to hurt you. Just like Charles Xavier and all the other X-Men," her posture shifting so her hands were on her hips to make her look more imposing.

Gloved hand whipping a few fallen tears, she turned to glare from her kneeling position. "And you don't?" she snapped angrily. "What'd you do to Paul?"

"Let's just say he missed the bus due to a miscommunication regarding the departure time," the shape shifter offered with that ever-present edge. And as if the topic had been some kind of cue, she retook the form of the blonde haired teen, hand out to Rogue. "Now let's rejoin the others…and break the tragic news."

Looking positively disgusted, Rogue reached for the hand, purposely ripping her glove off in the same motion. "No more secrets!" and snared his/her wrist. Mystique/Paul groaned from having her/his energy sapped so harshly, before reverting back to Mystique, resisting the hold, but still wobbling dazedly. "Your powers are mine! Your memories are mine!" And she saw. Amidst the influx, her mind, or Mystique's managed to separate out the more relevant remembrances.

Riding in a limo, talking…to her mom. Plotting to use her. Transforming into the various X-Men and attacking her while wearing their faces. And all just because of greed for her ability.

Looking almost stricken, Mystique's body finally gave out and she tumbled backward, Rogue letting go as she fell to the floor. Eyes wide at the overwhelming realization of just how they had all been used, her focus went back to the rock edge. "Oh, Scott! I'm so sorry!" Peering over the edge, against the dark she managed to find a bit of movement.

* * *

Several meters down below, Scott struggled to pull himself up onto the overhang. His fingers felt like they were about to pop off. Teeth gritting from the exertion, he looked back up just in time to see…to see Mystique jumping down to him. Great. Here to finish the job.

Regardless of that, his fingers decided right then was the time to call it a day. Slipping right off, he dropped right as Mystique landed on the small platform he'd been trying to get onto.

Form shimmering to that of Rogue, "Gotcha!" she declared, catching his wrists before he could fall too far. Heaving and grunting, they managed to get him up to safety, panting tiredly.

"It's getting kinda hard to tell the players without a scorecard around here," he admitted with strained levity, swinging his legs up onto solid rock. "Thanks for the lift, Rogue."

Unfortunately, the day wasn't done. The sound of shifting rock drew their attention upward from where they'd come. "Don't thank me yet. Look!" And watched as a boulder careened over the edge, courtesy of an awake, and thoroughly pissed off Mystique. Their only escape…diving downward, straight into the doubtless freezing river below.

It didn't take them but a few seconds to resurface. The temperature of the water alone was enough to send their hearts racing. Brisk! And, as if things weren't bad enough, the wall ahead meant a low bridge was coming up. Staying afloat as best he could, he tipped his sunglasses up, firing off a blast to clear the wall away before they went under and drowned.

"Ugh! Hang on to me!" he called back, and soon her arms encircled his neck. Just in time as they neared the drop off of the new waterfall. Rogue secured on his back, his arm scrabbled at the edge of the opening's mouth, finding purchase just in time to catch them as they fell. Thinking quickly, he used their momentum to swing down onto an outcropping. A relief since he didn't think he could've held them both for very long. The frosty wind stung against them, wet as they were, but at least they were on something solid. However, again, things took a turn for the unlucky. Giving a sharp, crumbling "CRCK!" the bit of rock gave way, and they once more fell.

Falling well over twenty meters, they were rewarded with the unforgiving surface of an ice bridge, no doubt left over from the melted survivor of a previous winter. But they hit hard.

The first to recover, hastened awake by the biting winds, Rogue pushed herself to her knees. "Scott," she called weakly, scooting over to him. While she had landing more or less unharmed, he had taken a harder hit, landing on his back, as he seemed barely conscious. "Scott, listen. Just hang on." Gloved hand cupping his cheek, her eyes alit on the darkening bruise on his right temple, just below the hairline. "You're gonna be okay. You're gonna be-" Then she realized what they'd landed on, and looked down.

"Oh, man, we're gonna die." To be fair, they'd been escaping death by the skin of their teeth most of the day already. How much longer would that luck hold out?

Snapped awake by her declaration, "Th-thanks for the pep talk," he stammered against the cold as she cradled his head, but he didn't seem to be capable of moving. Not good. "Rogue, thanks. Y-You saved my life." Much as this got to her, it reminded her of those last words scenes from movies.

"I owed it to ya," she countered. "Mystique had me pretty mixed up. Her mind's a tortured mess." No exaggeration there. "But I saw enough to know that you're not my enemy." Her shoulders sagged at the memories of Mystique and her mom. For a brief time, very brief, her mind drifted from the bitter cold and numbness to the woman who had raised her. "I really thought she cared about me." Though she could've been speaking of either, if not both of them. Betrayal. It dug deep.

"Hey, she probably does," he reasoned, trying to sit up with her help. Given who he was talking about, it was more than likely him playing devil's advocate for a spell. "Sometimes…it's just hard to understand adults. They never seem…to…trust us…" his words losing their strength before his head lolled weakly to the side.

"Scott? Don't pass out!" she urged, knowing there was nothing she could do in that regard, but keep trying. "Come on, wake up!"

* * *

Above them, cold, slate grey eyes glared downward. Huffing against the cold air, Mystique stood on the crest of the peak above them. Scowling, her form shifted, but to that of an animal. A scraggly, brown wolf. Snarling, the beast leapt down from outcropping to outcropping. Until it landed heavily on the near end of the ice bridge. Growling, it garnered Rogue's attention, its maw full of glistening teeth.

Eyes wide in realization. "Mystique!" No coincidence here. Grabbing Scott by his shoulders, she dragged him away as best she could from the approaching shape shifter in wolf's skin, but he was pretty heavy. And, when it came down to it, reaching the other end of the ice bridge, there was nowhere left to go. A sheer wall of ice stopped them.

* * *

"_Scott!_" Xavier called, reaching for his student's mind. "_Scott! I hope you can hear me. We're on our way! We're-Scott!_" Connection established, the telepath went rigid. "He's hurt."

Wolverine growled. "Great. How're we gonna find him in this white out?" he snarled in agitation.

* * *

Scott groaned, momentarily fighting his way back. "X-Men…They're coming," he rasped.

"W-What? They are? Gr-reat!" Rogue cheered weakly in elation.

But Scott didn't seem as enthusiastic. Possibly due to the concussion. "Th-They can't…find us."

"Figures." Fighting for as much distance as she could she pulled him closer to the end of the bridge, before being struck by inspiration. "Then we'll give them something they _can_ find," laying him flat on the hardened ice. Lifting away his ruby shades, "Open your eyes, Scott." He hesitated from the permanent fear of hurting someone. "Now!" she ordered.

He opened his eyes, and crimson streaked skyward.

* * *

"There!" Wolverine bellowed, spotting the familiar red blast cutting the storm. "Charles, take the controls," handing over control before unbuckling and getting out of his seat. Passing Storm and Naruto, he made for the hatch as the blackbird plowed on in the direction of the destructive red signal.

* * *

Too fatigued, and loopy, to maintain the blast, Scott's eyes drifted closed. Rogue hoped that it had been enough. Removing her glove, she gently touched him on the forehead, noting just how chill his skin was as she sapped a little of his power. Standing up, she met the faux wolf's intelligent, malicious eyes. "Some friendly advice, teach? Don't mess with the rogue!" and, eyes glowing scarlet, sent an optic blast right at it. Catching the lupine creature in the shoulder, it yelped, rolling backward before going right over the edge. Yipping in instinctual fear, its descent came to an early end as it shrunk, form shifting until it had gained wings, and the form of a raptor. Screeching, the bird soared back up.

But it was then that the blackbird rose into view as well, balking her. Side hatch open, Logan had his claws already unsheathed, glaring at the bird of prey.

"Give it up, Mystique," the burly X-Man recommended furiously. "Or you'll be tangling with a wolverine!"

The bird shrieked in outrage before reluctantly flapping away into the storm.

As if to encourage their departure, the ice bridge started to crumble beneath them. Blackbird realigning itself, the plane brought its hatch back around, closer to the edge of the soon to be gone platform. Meeting the X-Man's stony gaze, Rogue wondered, just for a second, if he would leave her there.

But the second was just that, and the surly man leapt from the hatch, grabbing them both up. "Hang on!" jumping back into the plane just as the bridge gave way beneath them.

* * *

Blackbird en route back to the institute, Storm and Wolverine checked Scott over. Haste no longer needed, Naruto slumped back over in his chair. That kind of concentrating was taxing. Standing up from the downed teen, Wolverine walked back to Rogue who was huddled, shivering against the base of a chair, knees to her chest.

"Where's your allegiance, kid?" he asked brusquely. "Us or them?"

"If I don't say you, will I get thrown out of this jet?" she stammered, warmth slow to return.

He sighed. "Nope. Not our style. We've either earned your trust by now, or we haven't."

Looking away, thoughtful, her eyes flitted over to Scott as he was being tended to, before back up to the imposing figure standing above her. "You."

Logan gave an approving grunt, extending his hand to her. "Welcome to the X-Men." Taking his hand, he ushered her to a seat.

* * *

That Afternoon:

"It's the same as lying to us," Jean reasoned. "We had a right to know who our principal really was," getting resounding cries of agreement from the others. After all that had happened, all that couldn't be taken back, he had called all the students to his study and, after explaining the day, had revealed to the rest the truth about their principal.

"Yah, man," Kurt chipped in. "What did you think we were gonna do? Go after her." Yeah, that was likely.

Positioned behind the couch where Rogue and Scott sat, the latter with a bandaged head, Evan rallied further in their defense. "Man, we know better. She wants to play like nothing's going down? So can we."

"It's like we were playing with fire and didn't even know it," Kitty exclaimed, exasperated at how close they'd actually been to their "enemy".

Scott looked over to Rogue. In every regard, her opinion on Mystique was the most relevant given the circumstances. "Rogue?"

Shrinking in a little on herself, "It's…not my place."

"Sure it is," Kitty scoffed. "You're a part of the family now." With an echo of assurance from Evan as well.

Leaning over the couch, "Yeah, girl. Tell us what you think."

Looking around at all the faces around her, looking to her, eager to hear what she had to say, "Well, I think…No, I've learned…that honesty is very important between people you care about. At least it is to me."

Xavier nodded in resignation. "You're right. All of you. I must apologize for keeping this secret from you, but, please understand, there are many challenges in your future. Secrets…elements of surprise… Some, you're ready to deal with. Some, you're not. In the future, I will try to do better in knowing which is which." In one regard, he'd failed them all, but, for now, he couldn't have felt prouder for underestimating the gaggle of teens.

Standing firm, albeit still a little dizzy, Scott spoke what they were all thinking. "Thanks, Professor. We're all in this together. It's nice to know we've all got something to learn. That's what makes us X-Men."

"It was kind of obvious though," Naruto offered out of the blue.

Kurt blinked before rounding on the blonde. "Wait. You knew?"

Shrugging, as if it were in fact no big deal, "Admittedly, not very long. I guessed at first, but the clues were all there."

"You could've said something."

"Maybe," he conceded, shrugging lazily.

* * *

AN/ Next chapter will be more Naruto centric. As for some of the ideas thrown my way… When I first started my stories, I'd had no intention of multiple pairings. Now look at my stories. I would like for at least one of my stories to be a monogamous pairing, but we'll see how this story unfolds. As it is, the pairing is Naruto/Wanda, but, and it's really iffy, depending on how things go I might add Rogue.


	5. The Lion, The Tin Man, And The Witch

X-Evo: Creating Legends  
Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Marvel's X-Men.

_Thoughts_**  
Demonic Voice**  
(Locations, usually.)  
(CEREBRO)

AN/ Hm, been a while since I updated this one. But, like I keep saying, and dumbasses keep ignoring, I've got a life outside of fanfic and a burning desire to pass my tests. But, hey, no skin off my nose.  
This is mainly a chapter to move the plot forward to "Cauldron".

* * *

Chapter 5: The Lion, The Tin Man, And The Witch

* * *

(The Antarctic)

Deafening quiet was broken by the high-pitched hum of the jet, hovering several meters over the white that covered all that could be seen. Stationary, its engines kicked up clouds of white, powdered snow sweeping outward.

The exterior hatch opening, Wolverine shuffled to the edge of the ramp. Draped over his shoulder was the large frame of Sabertooth. Eyeing the environs, he shrugged the larger mutant from his shoulder, and let him fall to the snowy hills below. Behind him, Xavier let go his hold that'd kept him unconscious ever since he'd been captured. Now though, he restored him, with the exception to his recent memories regarding Logan and the school.

"Ooag…Where am I?" Drawing a blank, he shook his head as the fog cleared. For the time being, thinking felt like slogging through wet cement. "Can't…remember." Thoroughly dazed, he didn't notice the jet bank and speed away, that is provided he hadn't been prevented from noticing the aerial vehicle via some mental suggestion.

* * *

"That's gonna be one heck of a walk back," he mused as the two reentered the blackbird's main cabin. Flipping a few toggles to re-pressurize the cabin, he directed the jet back North. The blonde had been taken along as a chance for him to clock some time flying. He was tense as all get out, but so far there hadn't been any major issues.

"Keep your attention on the task at hand." Consenting to the headmaster's subtle chiding, he focused back on the controls and the horizon.

Buckling himself back into his seat, "It'll take 'm a while, but he'll live."

* * *

Friday, 5:20am

Toothbrush doing lazy motions, his thoughts went over idle thoughts, nothing all that substantial. Gaze focusing, he looked at himself in the mirror, having a passing thought. His hair was getting a bit long, enough so that he thought of his father and their brief meeting. He'd been keeping it short with a spare kunai, his last one, but now that it'd reached this point… He wondered about leaving it alone. A thought that'd occurred every now and again. Embrace the family resemblance a little.

Meh, but that wasn't him. He was the trailblazer his parent's would be proud of. They'd said as much. He couldn't hold back the smile at that as he rinsed his brush off, shaking his head at the early morning nostalgia.

Whisker-like scars, faded with the purification of Kyubi's chakra, could be noticed at the right angle in the mirror. Birthmarks they may be, but it seemed Kyubi's chakra's presence had made them more visible. Anyway, a little henge over them, just to remove any doubt, and there… He looked "normal".

Oh…the joy.

* * *

(Stokes County Maximum Security Facility)

Deep within the bowels of the veritable fortress that was the prison, none paid any heed as a guard passed all security checkpoints to stand before a massive, fluid-filled containment vessel, an equally large form suspended inside. Activating the palm-scanner, the tank hummed, its contents starting to slowly drain. Fearing no reprisal at this point, the guard's form shimmered, rippling downward from the head to be replaced by the slighter frame of Mystique.

Her current power play. He had more muscle than she could ask for to aid her in the task at hand.

Within the tank slash prison cell, an individual of impressive stature blinked blearily as consciousness started to return. Smirking smugly up at the "Wake up, Cain. It's time you had a long overdue family reunion with your brother…Charles Xavier." As if he'd heard her, a possibility, eyes narrowed dangerously.

* * *

(Back at the Xavier Institute)

An hour later, having taken his time, and he was welcomed on his journey to the kitchen by the smell of cooking. Oh, it was Ororo's turn. Despite its bland flavor, or lack thereof of any flavor, he could make out the smell of oatmeal in the background of the smells, added to the defining feature of tea on the air.

It wouldn't be Logan. Though he was more flexible than the short man, they both tended to lean towards stout meals, laden with calories to fuel their enhanced metabolisms. But Ororo at the helm meant a healthier breakfast. He could separate the smells the closer he got. Tomatoes, likely sliced, grapefruit, the citrusy aroma stinging a bit, poached eggs, and, the one vice she offered for the students' sake, a serving of meat. She tended to favor a more healthy diet, but she knew that she could only get away with so much of it was her turn making the morning meal. …Bacon, judging by the aroma.

"Mmmmm," he hummed, salivating as he pushed through the door. Sometimes, that sort of thing spoke volumes more than any words. Still, one or two were to be expected. "Morning."

At the counter, slicing the tomatoes, the weather-witch regarded the early-rising teen. "Good morning." At the table Logan just grunted around his newspaper and coffee.

Using just a wee bit of agility, the blonde stole several slices of tomato from the cutting board, despite Ororo's attempts to slap his hand away. Leaning back against the counter a little ways from her, "Y'know, any more students and there's gonna need to be more than one of us makin' breakfast," he mumbled between bites, having thrown a remaining two purloined slices over a bit of toast.

Ororo sent him an amused glance. "Yes, it's hard enough feeding a house filled with teenagers without you two added into the mix." Logan felt indifferent enough not to answer, but Naruto responded with a smug grin. "Yeah, well, can't speak for him, but _I_ happen to be a growing boy."

Taking up three poached eggs, he threw them in between some toasted bread as an impromptu "snack" until everything was ready. To speed things along, he wordlessly sent off a clone to help her. Not that breakfast, more of it, being made faster wasn't self-serving, but he'd like to think he was trying to help. "So, are the others ready?" No hiding the mirth in his tone.

Ororo hesitated before shaking her head. As much a sign of exasperation as it was of negation. "They should all be packed, but they're still quite reluctant." Well, most of them. Scott and Jean were ready and willing for the day, but the others…

Two weeks prior, the school had advertised a two-day trip to a boot camp. It was meant to instill discipline, teamwork, and, among other things, get the youths out into the wild and fresh air. An idea that the Professor had gotten behind wholeheartedly, much to the dismay of a few students in particular. To be fair though, he did give them a choice.

Go on the trip, or…spend the weekend on a wilderness training excursion…with Logan.

That swayed the groaners and whiners, not that it stopped them from doing so.

As such, they would be excused from Friday's classes, leaving that morning, and returning Saturday night.

"I still wish you would go along with them," Ororo nagged. "You know the importance of teamwork."

The difference from the vote had been Naruto. The blonde, having gotten the rundown of what would be expected of him, chose the Logan's Run option in a blink.

"Yeah, I do," he agreed, munching along. "I trust Scott's judgment as a leader, and I trust the others, too. But they need this more than me. Besides," swallowing, "I'm also staying behind out of kindness."

Ororo's brow knit in confusion, hands pausing in cutting the final gorgeously red tomato. "Kindness?" That sounded a little too odd for belief.

"Yeah, I can handle Mr. Team Leader, but some idiot starts yelling orders at me like I'm some townie and I'm likely to break their jaw on instinct," he explained, matter-of-factly and with a straight face to boot. Logan's face was hidden, but they could both hear his deep chuckles, muted though they were. "B'sides, I'd personally rather spend a few days in the woods."

To which most anyone who'd spent enough time around him could agree.

"So, when do we leave?"

"Eh, you've got more experience than the others, so…let's say nine." Meaning there was plenty of time for a leisurely breakfast.

* * *

As they'd piled out of the mansion, there were more than a few grumblings at the early hour. It was only 7am, but they acted like it was hours earlier. Given Logan's plans for the day, Ororo had taken it upon herself to drive the X-Van full of "eager" youths to school.

Naruto tried not to smile at the less than enthusiastic sleepy groans.

Okay, so maybe his own short sleeping hours made it easier for him, but it was still amusing. Especially when Kurt, face resting against the van window, started snoring into the glass.

* * *

8:30am

Dressed in jeans and a long-sleeve shirt, Naruto waited in the open living room, sitting on a couch armrest, for Logan to eventually get there. This felt enough like a mission that he'd been rather fleet footed in gathering the necessary gear. It wasn't much. He still had his sole remaining kunai and the ninja wire that'd survived the trip, and, upon Logan's urging, had brought one of the institute's heavy jackets, currently lying on the steps next to him. He didn't need much.

Surviving was his thing.

"Y'got any problems with Canada?"

Turning to the doorway, the teen just shrugged. "Not really." He had the vaguest recollection of it from his introduction into geography, but couldn't remember anything that stuck out… Well, he remembered trees, that was pretty much it.

"You'll love it, kid. C'mon, we'll take the jet."

* * *

Heading for the concealed elevator that led to the sublevels, and the Blackbird hangar therein, they met the Professor en route, him rounding the corner. "Chuck, we're headed out."

But the uber psychic didn't seem as accepting of the idea as he had been when it had been discussed at breakfast. His expression was one of concern and agitation. "I'm afraid you'll have to push off the excursion, Logan," Xavier stated. "I'm afraid a terribly urgent issue has come up." And from there he took them to Cerebro where he'd spent the last few minutes.

Pulling up the recent scan, "I was just monitoring some activity from Camp Ironback. The students had been rather…active with their powers, and then Cerebro picked up another mutant signature." Rolling to a stop in front of the keyboard, he started inputting commands.

"I told you, you shoulda let _me_ handle their survival training."

Xavier, despite his tense disposition, let a small smile show. "If you'll remember, I gave them that option."

"And here I am," Naruto chimed in. "Ready for the advanced course."

"Pipe down, kid." Logan shook his head at the blonde's sarcasm. Looking back to the large computer monitor, "A new mutant?"

Naruto had already seen the Cerebro doohickey once before. Interesting, but since he couldn't understand all of the "How", the interest was sidelined. It wasn't all that different than his sensing ability when in Sage Mode or Kyubi Mode. "Hunh, mansion's starting to fill up."

"No such luck I'm afraid," Xavier sighed. The computer screen came to light, delivering the readings it'd taken not an hour prior.

(DISCOVERY. ENHANCED MUTANT SIGNATURE. IDENTITY CONFIRMED AND MATCHED TO ARCHIVE FILE.)

"Archive file?" Naruto wondered aloud, beating Logan to the question. "What's that mean?"

Xavier motioned to the computer, "Just watch."

Upon the statement of an archive file, the particular file opened on the screen, a picture coming into focus. (NAME: CAIN MARKO) The picture alone said he was fricking huge, though the stats and numbers did confirm it. (RESIDENCE: STOKES COUNTY MAXIMUM SECURITY PRISON. CURRENT LOCATION: IN TRANSIT, UPSTATE NEW YORK.)

Logan was confused, and he didn't like being confused. This was the first time he'd heard of this guy. So, why hadn't Charles mentioned him before if he was already on the books. "Okay, who's-"

"My half-brother," Xavier answered tightly. "He's…He's escaped." That last statement having all the sensation of swallowing a lump of lead.

Naruto blinked before pointing at the screen. "_That's_ your brother? No offense, Professor, but…what side of the gene pool did _he_ crawl out of?" Humorous, but flavored with exasperated disbelief.

Leaning over the console to the side of Xavier's chair, getting a better look at the computer as well as to put more emphasis in his body language, Logan looked over to the telepath. "What's an "enhanced" mutant?"

Xavier's chair pulled back, away from Cerebro. "He possessed an X-gene at birth, like myself, but it remained dormant most of his life. So he awakened it with mysticism." Not such a hard to believe topic given who was present and all they'd seen as of yet. "The truth is, we both know of another enhanced mutant," wheeling around to face Naruto, bringing to light his meaning.

"Oh." That was really all he could say. But it sounded about right. X-gene, in his case his Uzumaki level potency chakra…plus the youki that he'd been constantly infused with through his life, and… Mazal tov. It's an uber mutant.

"So, what? We throw food at him and wait for him to calm down?" Naruto slugged him none too gently for that crack about his eating habits. "So what kinda powers does he have?"

"He's become a juggernaut," Xavier explained. "Invulnerable."

* * *

Elsewhere, bald as brass, the armored Juggernaut strolled down the center of the highway. Ignoring the sirens and police cars that had surrounded him, he easily hefted the ones directly in front of him and threw them out of his way, not even breaking his stride doing so.

He had better things to do today than _play_.

* * *

(Back at the mansion)

"Cain is too dangerous for the police to face." Tenting his fingers, "They wouldn't even know how to slow him down. And I'm afraid that the longer he is in the public eye, the greater chances are that he could expose us all. I've sent Storm to provide some support to that effect."

* * *

(Flying high over upstate New York…)

The blackbird screamed through the skies, hanging lower than usual. At the helm, Ororo set the autopilot before leaving her seat. Behind the main controls, a platform rose out of the floor. Stepping on, she belted herself into the waist-high railing, and it slowly elevated, through the newly opened roof panel, and into the air.

Eyes going white, she raised her arms upward, reigning in the elements around her.

From a broader perspective, it was like a cloud developed at the nose of the jet, engulfing it before being carried and spread along by it. The dense vapor fell to the ground, a thick fog canvasing the landscape.

* * *

Xavier sighed in relief at the news report. The fog was doing its job, making it increasingly difficult for anyone to find his brother. Hand coming to his temple, a habit from his early years of using his powers, he concentrated. "_Very good, Storm. Keep it up._" Turning around to the approaching footsteps of Logan, "If no one can _see_ Cain, then no one will be foolish enough to try and recapture him." A sound plan, that still left in question of just how _they_ would recapture him.

Logan's face was set into his usual "I don't like this" grimace. "If I can't stop him, Charles, your best defense 'll be in the Danger Room. I've got it set up." The pair heading down the hall from Cerebro to the elevator that would take the Professor to the sublevels, and from there the Danger Room. "I'll take point, see how that goes. The kid 'll be the next line of defense."

"Yeah, well, "the kid" is ready," Naruto announced, standing in front of the elevator in his combat uniform. "You should have faith in us, Professor. This is _us_. I can't speak for Logan, but I've fought some really strong people."

Xavier smiled wryly. "That, my boy, is something of the problem." The blonde blinked, not getting it. "I'm afraid that if you used any of your more powerful abilities, it might not be very…subtle." To which the blonde crossed his arms, looking a touch offended.

"Sure, mess up the landscape a little and suddenly everyone'd rather the bad guy wins."

Xavier offered an apologetic look, but returned to his conversation with Logan. "Yes. The Danger Room may slow him down, but it won't stop him."

"So, how did he get locked up in the first place?" Naruto asked, hoping for an edge.

The Canadian was on similar paths of thought. "Do you have any defense against him at all?"

The elevator chose then to open. "Just one: my mind," and he rolled inside, where Logan and the blonde teen followed. "With enough psychic blasts I can disable him…unless he's wearing his helmet."

"Trust a bad guy to have a glaringly obvious chink in his armor." Both adults stared back at him. "Not that I'm complaining." It was certainly better than some of the guys he'd fought. "_I wonder how the others' day is going?_"

As irony would have it, the others were having difficulties of their own.

Key among them being prevalent immaturity.

* * *

(Converging on the Xavier Institute…)

Maintaining his casual stride, the hulking mutant passed over a set of train tracks in his path. Unfortunately, a cargo train had been passing at the time. He'd waded through it like tissue paper, the train cars lying disheveled across the landscape behind him.

* * *

The short journey to the Danger Room allowed enough time for the professor to explain his brother's enduring grudge against him. Boiled down, it was all daddy issues and sibling rivalry.

At the head of the group, Xavier continued to explain as they entered the cavernous, reinforced chamber that was the Danger Room. "But after he was empowered that anger became destructive and dangerous." Coming to a halt at its center, he wheeled his chair around to face the doorway and them. "He…had to be locked away. I…had no other choice," regret ringing true in his voice.

Naruto couldn't really begrudge the Professor his choice. "Your brother, your call." The closest he could ever admit to something like that was Sasuke. It was just one of those choices that you had to live with. "You just have to live with your decision."

Before any more questions or answers could be laid out, klaxons blared, echoing off the walls.

Logan's face set into a less friendly grimace. Pulling his cowl over his head, "He's here." Turning to Naruto, "You know what to do, kid. He gets passed me, he's all yours," he reinforced sternly, walking by him and out of the room, the metal doors hissing shut, sealing the room.

Sighing to himself, the blonde turned to the professor. "Times like this, I _really_ miss being able to fight in the open." Reaching up, Xavier patted the teen on the shoulder.

"Yes, well, having seen some of your "battles" I think, for the time being, it is for the best," he reinforced.

"I miss the challenge though." The teen groaned, crossing his arms and glaring childishly into the middle distance. "Logan gets to have all the fun." Despite the stress of the moment, the professor wore a small, amused smile for the blonde, subtly shaking his head.

* * *

Striding up the drive, Juggernaut loomed over the Xavier Institute. Passing by the fountain, even its height barely dwarfed the giant of a man. "Lay out the Welcome mat, brother," he ground out. "I'm coming _home_." Just behind him, Mystique stood patiently, smirking.

It was just a matter of time.

* * *

Coming to the steps at the base of the mansion, Juggernaut began his ascent. Each pitifully small step bringing him closer to his goal. Except, at the third step, he ran into an…annoyance.

"Raaarrhhh!"

Diving from the terrace above, Wolverine was upon him. But only for a moment. Not minding the exceptionally sharp claws, Juggernaut just threw him aside and continued up the steps. He wasn't that easily deterred, but, then, neither was Logan. Coming at the armored mutant from behind, he used his shoulder as a stepping stone to jump back into his path.

Oaky, so maybe a _little_ annoyed, "You can't stop the Juggernaut!" he growled out.

Planting himself, Wolverine unsheathed his claws again. Face drawn into a determined snarl, "Forgive me for tryin', bub!" and threw himself back at the behemoth.

* * *

(Downstairs…)

Both Professor X and Naruto were keeping track of the fight in their own way. Naruto sat in front of the man, legs crossed and fists together in his learned stance for meditation and concentration. Reaching out with his senses, he was tracking their progression through the mansion, Xavier staying informed by using his telepathy to watch the fight as he "saw" it.

"Logan's faster," Naruto mumbled, grimacing. "But he just doesn't have the outright power."

"There's someone else…"

"…Mystique," the blonde confirmed. Feeling out the third life force, he'd recognized it immediately. Focused on Logan and Juggernaut, he'd almost overlooked it.

"That would explain a great deal," the professor mused to himself. The "how", but not yet the "why".

* * *

The serenity and cleanliness of an untouched hall was immediately broken as Wolverine passed through it. Out of one wall and on through another. Followed very shortly after by Juggernaut.

Seconds later, Mystique climbed through the decent-sized hole, stepped over the rubble. Only to recoil in disbelief. Watching her footing, she'd looked down to see the "debris" she'd been climbing over was sheetrock scattered across an obliterated mass of computer components and machinery.

"No!" Reaching down, she picked up what was undoubtedly a helmet, twisted and crushed. Lips curling into a rictus of outrage, "That _musclehead!_"

* * *

Head twitching, the blonde teen opened his eyes to stare at the wall as he rose to his feet, at the ready. "They've reached the lower levels." Clenching his fists, he instinctively started to flex some of his chakra in a pre-battle warm-up. A loud "WHAM!" echoed from the doors to the Danger Room. Moments later, Logan was bulled through the doors by Juggernaut; thrown into the room, dazed and groaning. Standing strong in the doorway, his giant frame threw a daunting silhouette against the light of the hall.

An all too familiar feminine voice roared out in anger, "You lumbering imbecile!" Coming up from behind Juggernaut to stand in the doorway with him, she glared balefully up at him. "What did you do? _Sit_ on Cerebro?"

"_When is that lady ever _not_ angry?_" Naruto wondered idly. Tensed, he was waiting for dome-head to make his move.

"You've _smashed_ it! What happened to our deal?!" You could actually hear the outrage as her voice broke.

In that moment, puzzle pieces came together for the professor. Now he had a definitive reason for why Mystique would release his brother. He'd had a feeling it was more than just to face him, and he was right.

"I don't _make_ deals!" the armored giant scoffed, the back of his hand in her gut sending her flying into the Danger Room. She hit the ground a few meters later alongside a still down Wolverine, her momentum carrying her to Xavier's feet.

Moving to stand more directly in front of the professor, Naruto got ready. In truth, he was actually a little thrilled. He was all for peace and quiet, but he missed a good fight every now and then. And here a potentially good one was staring him in the face.

Man…but the guy really cast a long, heavy shadow over the room.

"Charles. Aren't you going to welcome me home?"

* * *

(At that moment, Boot Camp…)

After a heated battle to reach the summit and claim the flag, a supposed "no powers" challenge had become anything but as tempers and competitive natures wore down resolve. Well, except for Jean.

But timing, as they say, was everything. An argument between sides over the flag and subsequent claim to victory were halted rather dramatically by the blackbird clearing the mountain, hovering overhead.

* * *

(Back in the Danger Room…)

"Bad place to make a stand, kid." He expected tiny to stand his ground. Dumb kid. Laughing in short hilarity at the comparatively miniscule teen's intent, he leaned into a lope. "Last chance, shorty!" At the very least, he'd put the kid down fast. Meters cut quickly into feet, and fists the size of hams were thrown.

Back to the note of what he'd expected… What he _hadn't_ expected was for all forward movement to come to a grinding halt. He hadn't thought the kid would move. Nothing but stubbornness in that face. He was flattened to see his fists intercepted. He pushed the kid back a few feet, but eventually that slowed to nothing.

Gritting his teeth, stooped over the surprising roadblock, he glared furiously down at him.

* * *

His arms were trembling.

The weight and strength behind the massive mutant surprised him. He could both hear and feel the metal floor start to flex beneath him. Strictly speaking, his opponent had numerous advantages. Reach. Size. Defense. And an impressive amount of brute strength. He was pouring on the chakra to counter the monstrous strength.

Juggernaut internally sneered. The kid had balls to try and play mercy with him. Smirking, he put his weight behind the mercy hold, taking deep satisfaction at the sudden and dramatic widening of the eyes of his opponent. "Yer good, kid," he ground out. "Fact is, few years, you could be a decent challenge," and he plied more force. "But I'm called the Juggernaut for a reason. Heh, face it, you don't got the power to go toe to toe with the likes o' me."

That seemed to get a response, wide eyes narrowing, but not from fear or apprehension. Through clenched teeth, the spiky-haired teen glared fiercely back at him. "Oh, I wouldn't say that. I'm plenty strong as is." The whole time he'd been chided by the mammoth of a man, he'd been nursing a side conversation with the professor.

* * *

When Naruto first felt his grip slipping…

"_Professor!_"

Surprised by the sudden mental outreach, but ready, he opened up a channel for them to "speak". "_Naruto! How are you doing? Can you hold him any longer?_" He could see that the boy was beginning to lose ground, even if only inches to start with, but he could sense from his surface thoughts that he was a little worried.

"_Maybe. But I'm running out of options. How "invulnerable" are we talking?_" he asked, exertion shadowing over the link.

"_...Very._" And there it was. He needn't it to be said to read what the teen wanted to do. "_I see. But, please, don't go any higher than that first level of yours._" Immediately, he could feel a swell of relief across the link.

"_Thanks, Prof._"

* * *

(Back to the standoff…)

"Like I said," he bit back in a low, groan of a growl. "I'm plenty strong. In fact, you could call me a regular **demon.**" And with that last, particular, word, his frame exploded with bright orange flame-like skin.

From that point, Juggernaut felt the difference in strength begin to leave his favor. Whatever the kid had done, all the give was gone, and he wasn't struggling anymore. Then, from out of absolutely nowhere, an arm…an _arm_…of that energy stuff burst off of the runt to bury itself in his gut.

Skidding back a few feet, the massive mutant was more than a little stunned by the move. It actually hurt. A little. Grinning behind his helm, he cracked his knuckles. "Heh, you're jus' making this interesting," he applauded, throwing his weight into it. "I'll be with you in a minute, brother. After I mulch your little guard dog." Anticipation peaked, his eyes went back to the cocky little kid. "Don' think that little trick of yours makes you strong enough to beat me."

The kid smirked toothily, ferociously. "I don't have to _beat_ you," he chuckled back heartily. "I could though," he mused mostly to himself. "But… No, I've just been running out the clock. Well, guess what? You're time's up. I'd say the odds are even less in your favor _now_." Looking behind Juggernaut, as if seeing through him, "What took you guys?" He knew Storm had been going to pick them up, and the moment he'd entered this mode, he'd been able to sense their approach and arrival.

Behind the stalemate, late arrivals stood poised in the wide doorway. X-Men and Brotherhood. "Traffic. Take him down," Scott announced.

* * *

When all was said and done, the two mutant groups worked surprisingly well together. It only took a further five or so minutes to remove the walking titan's helmet, wherein the professor telepathically subdued him. There was actually a subtle body imprint in the metal floor of the Danger Room where the guy hit the ground.

One time only, as Mystique confirmed on exit.

Yeah, like she was so graciously being helpful. Not like she hadn't started it in the first place by letting dome-head out, or that her blue ass hadn't been in the line of fire as well.

* * *

(X-Mansion Common Room)

Groaning, the blonde leaned back on the couch, an icepack across his forehead. That armored asshole had landed one or two hard hits to his face, and though the outright damage may've long healed, the lasting effects were still lingering. Meaning a fun little migraine for the next hour.

Logan was the same. He wouldn't say it, but he was secretly enjoying a beer away from prying teen eyes.

"Quit yer whining," the Canadian grumbled his way.

Naruto pouted, "Sure, sure… I could've beaten him to a pulp and saved myself the headache, but nooooooooo…ungh…" More cranial throbbing. "Discretion…property damage… I think I actually miss that about my shitty home." Logan sent him a rather amused glance. "I didn't have to worry about either of those." For the moment, the adults allowed him his bit of language.

"But you're a ninja," Jean pointed out, shoving his feet over so she could sit on the edge of the couch. Throughout the room, a few of the other students were still awake. Others, Evan and Kitty specifically, were dead asleep already from the camping trip turned mission. "Aren't those both things you had to be careful of?"

He smirked under the icepack. "Not _this_ ninja. I could be sneaky as I wanted, but I didn't prefer fighting that way. No, I got the job _done_. Situation hopeless? Send me in. Though most of my fights were in fairly remote locations…so property damage and loss of life were pretty much zero." He grimaced again. "Sooooo, I couldn't be allowed to knock dome-head around while he was above ground all for anonymity. Oh well. Excuse me while I stoically suffer in victory."

"Wait, so if you could really beat him, then vhat vas stopping you?"

Taking the icepack off his face, he sent a wry glance to Kurt. "Most of my stuff is _not_ subtle."

"But-"

"I'm talking creatively wrecking the landscape for a mile or two." Unable to go without the ice any longer, he let the bag slump back into place. "So, yeah, could've won…but we'd have news crews here in mob numbers. Though if I'd known about the headache I'd be having, I might've tried it anyway. Besides, you all need the fighting experience more than I do." He'd considered going more on the offensive, but when he'd picked up their approach he'd figured he'd leave it to them and see how they fared.

Xavier smiled apologetically, "Yes, well, thank you for being discreet, Naruto." The blonde just groaned.

Taking the initiative for the more aching members, Jean got up from where she sat on the arm of the couch. "Hold on, I'll get you some more ice."

"Thanks…appreciate it."

"Man, don't be such a wimp. We kicked bad-guy butt today!"

"Hey, I took a blow to the head because you were slow, porcupine butt," he grumbled weakly. Not even deeming Evan worthy of a glare, he just lay there with his glorious ice-pack. "We won, so I can whine all I want,"

"We've still got your survival trip, champ," Logan added, draining his beer.

"…Yay, vacation," the blonde groaned. Though, as far as he was concerned, it was a vacation. There wasn't anything in these forests to be much of a challenge.

"_I would also like to speak to you about something tomorrow, Naruto,_" Xavier telepathically sent to heroically whining teenager. Given his strength, all that power just brimming beneath the surface, it bolstered an idea he'd been considering.

* * *

(Roughly 2 weeks later)

"I still don't know why I'm here, Professor," muttered a male voice.

"You will see," Xavier answered, his voice echoing slightly in the room that he was, by all accounts, the sole occupant of.

The reinforced door opened, four orderlies entering the room surrounding, restraining a girl. Strapped tightly in a straightjacket a fire raged in her eyes. Anger, uncontrolled rage. Once in the room, she settled down enough that the guards were able to cut her loose from the tethers. Still in her straightjacket, she stared angrily back at the handicapped man in the wheelchair in front of her.

"Good morning, Wanda. I've heard you've been doing well. No accidents in a week," Xavier complimented, purposefully ignoring the slight rattle her powers was sending through the ground.

"Then let me out," she growled tightly through clenched teeth. She was a wild thing, her raven hair falling down to her chin. Dark areas under eyes spoke volumes of difficult sleeping. Despite the straight jacket and hair-trigger ferocity about her, she was the picture of health.

Xavier frowned at the hostility he sensed coming off her the same as always. "I'm afraid not yet, Wanda. Your anger is still too much of an issue with your uncontrolled powers. Once you manage to control that anger, and let it go, your powers will be more controllable and you will be allowed to attend my institute."

The dark haired teen glared darkly back at him.

"I've brought someone here to see you," Xavier continued. "He's a recently new student at the school. And, like you, he too has an immense power within him." Looking away from Wanda for but a moment, "Please, come out."

The corner of the room behind the Professor shimmered until Naruto was revealed. He was dressed casually in a white t-shirt with orange sleeves and highlights, jeans, and a pair of sneakers.

"Wanda Maximoff, this is Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto gave the slightest of smiles. "Hello." Wanda just shared a glare with him before looking away, though a little interest twinkled in her eyes. He…was like her? She doubted it, but also couldn't help but wonder.

"As I've said, Naruto here has a tremendous power within him. A power that can cause unimaginable damage if he were to lose control." She looked away, but the Professor could sense he had her attention.

"It's a little more complicated than that, Professor," the blonde amended, mostly for the third member of their party. "It's mostly a side-effect. My powers are kind of linked with my emotional state. The more emotional I get, the more power I let out, uncontrollably."

"I'll leave you two alone to talk and compare your individual gifts," said the Professor. And with a short knock at the door, the guard let him out, leaving the two to themselves.

"So why're you here?" she asked icily. "Gonna try to convince me that staying here is in my best interest?" Venom dripped from her words.

Hands in his pockets, Naruto shrugged lazily. "Honestly, I don't really know. The Professor just asked me to come. But after seeing you, I think I have an idea."

"And what's that?" she spat.

Blue eyes narrowed, his brow furrowed. "I can feel the power coming off you. Your rage is so great that you can't stop it from leaking out."

Wanda just stared at him from where she stood against the wall, crossing her arms in subconscious frustration. "Your point?"

"My point is… Who is in control?"

"What?" she asked, for the moment genuinely confused.

"Who is in control? The power is yours, and yet you let it have dominion over you. You can't let your power or your hate rule your life…or you'll never be free." Man, he remembered that feeling. When the rage would take over. At first, he could handle it, but over time it grew and any sense of control rapidly dwindled. Back then, he'd more than once had nightmares about losing control, of his anger, his rage, and the icy fear that would grip him at not knowing just what he would do in that state. He still had them occasionally, but since Ky-_his_ demonic chakra had been purified the overt fear was gone.

"Do you actually think they can keep me in here forever?!" she snarled.

"When I said "free" I was never talking about this place. I'm saying that if you don't come to terms with your anger, it will haunt you forever." Jiraiya's words to him, once upon a time.

"What do you care?!" she yelled back at him. The light above flickered and crackled, the walls shaking a little from her burst of rage. "You know, right? Xavier told you? My own _father_ threw me in here! I have a right to be angry!"

His eyes narrowed. "Do you think I like places like this?! Or the fact that there are people imprisoned in places like this because of things other people did to them?!" His demonic chakra was bleeding into his system, the effects beginning to show. The room was thick with their warring powers, sparks arcing through the air. He snarled back at her, fang-like teeth glistening. "So your father locked you up in here, big deal. Get over it already! By raging at him, your letting him control you!"

This was nostalgic for him, but not in a way he liked. He'd hated a lot of people when he'd been younger, but he'd let that go for the simple fact that he _didn't_ _like_ hating.

Wanda wanted to get angry at him, but she could recognize the truth to his words, no matter how much she didn't want to. She was also a little on edge from the energy she could feel, and even see, coming off him. Exhaling in a grumpy sigh, her rampaging powers faded.

He calmed down moments later as he reigned in his feelings. "I can only hope that you can eventually understand," he growled before turning on his heel and heading to the door. Fist raised, about to rap on it, he was stopped by a hesitant voice.

"Could you stay a while? I don't…I don't get many visitors," she asked. Her tone then was a far cry from the frigid clip from just a moment earlier. In this change, he could hear the well hidden loneliness, covered expertly by reluctance. If he had to guess, while she didn't really like Xavier for not letting her out, she did secretly like the visits as they were moments of human contact. Xavier, patient and persistent as he was, would stay despite her rankling, but not him. And she caved, her momentary anger fading in favor of wanting company.

Tilting his head in curiosity as he looked back at her, contemplating, he shrugged indifferently. "…Sure, okay." Turning around, he walked to the wall next to hers and sat down on the cool stone floor, arms resting on his bent knees. She sat down shortly after, still against her own wall.

After a long awkward silence, "So where are you from?" she asked, trying to start a conversation, but was lost as where to start since she had so very little experience.

"…An alternate Earth," he answered in a matter-of-fact fashion.

She looked away. "You don't have to say anything if you don't want to. You don't have to make up a lie."

"I'm not lying," he said solemnly.

She was more than a little off-put by the sincerity in his tone. "Well, how did you-"

"Get here?" She nodded.

He smiled. "I was being burnt at the stake when I simply decided to leave. That 'decision' brought me here, if a little crispy," he said, slightly amused.

"…"

"It's the truth," he assured. "From what I'm told, I appeared in the home of this Earth's "mystical guardian", Dr. Stephen Strange, and he brought me to Xavier."

She was stunned, mostly at the "burnt at the stake" part which almost made her physically ill, but also that he'd travelled to another dimension or whatever by simply deciding to. If anyone else had attempted such a story with her, she might've simply gone on disbelieving, but there was such conviction in his tone that she couldn't simply disregard his tale as fiction. And that was a damn good story. Too farfetched to be used so freely.

"Why were you-"

"Used as kindling?" he interrupted, a hint of further dark amusement in his voice, grinning wanly. "I'm not entirely human, not anymore. And no I don't mean the whole human-mutant thing," he said, seeing the question she wanted to ask. "I have the mutant gene, but then again, from what we believe most of my people do. Mine is a little different from the x-gene on this world, but it's close enough. While I am a mutant, I'm also part demon," he said with all seriousness. Her eyes were wide, staring back at him. "Yeah, that's one of the usual responses. Anyway, my whole half human, half demon situation didn't really sit well with the people back home. Especially since my demon half came from a full-blooded demon fox that very nearly destroyed my village. To make a long story short, it was sealed within my body, jailed there, with me as the warden. Well, you can see how the people would have looked at me when they found out. Oh yeah, growing up was real fun," he said sarcastically. "Anyway, about a year ago, the demon inside me merged with my body, bringing about some less than desired changes. It kinda made things worse when they thought the demon was trying to escape. Hence, the Naruto barbecue."

"Sorry," she offered finally. There wasn't much emotion in it, but it was a show of remorse for what his people had done.

"It's not your fault," he said, shrugging. "It's not even their fault."

"How can you say that?!" she asked, suddenly surprised almost as much by his uncaring attitude as she was by her own, caring, attitude.

He looked her in the eyes. "They let their anger rule them. They'll never be free of it, of me. While I…I could care less. I've learned there's little point in trying to seek the approval of those that look down on me. It's only the approval of those that really matter to me that counts, in my opinion."

She digested that little piece of information. In a way, she was similar to the people that had hurt him. Hating.

There was a knock at the door. "Yeah?" Naruto called.

The door opened, Xavier rolling in. If he found their seated positions on the floor at all odd he hid it well. Almost immediately though, Wanda took up her stony exterior once more. "I'm afraid that's all the time there is for today, Naruto."

Sighing, the blonde pushed off the floor and climbed to his feet. "Well, it's been a pleasure meeting you, Wanda. I hope we get to see each other again," he said with an honest smile before he walked out, his form shimmering into transparency before he stepped over the threshold.

"Well Wanda, you certainly seem calmer after your talk," and indeed, her energy was lashing out as it usually did. Though it was still quite feral. After bidding his goodbye for now he was stopped at the door by a simple request.

"Can he…come again?" Her voice calmer than the usual bestial growl or angry yell that she usually gave him.

Xavier was internally thrown through a loop. He had never expected the boy to work such wonders, and so quickly! "I'm certain he would be delighted, Wanda," Xavier assured as the guards came to take her away. She was far less emphatic in her resistance than usual, and Xavier expected it had to do with the talk she had had with the boy. This was what he had hoped for, but never had he dreamed of such. During his rehabilitation, Xavier'd learned through the blonde's memories that he had an almost divine ability to bring out the good in people. An innate ability that was for the most part unconscious, but no less powerful.

But to actually witness its effect…

* * *

AN/ Scarlet Witch introduced, but not free. This is months before Mystique breaks her out.


End file.
